


Ancient Legacy

by DennyJ



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-04-14
Updated: 2008-04-14
Packaged: 2018-12-17 17:17:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 32,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11856117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DennyJ/pseuds/DennyJ
Summary: A familiar face arrives at the SGC asking for help--specifically, Dr. Daniel Jackson's help. This simple request for assistance thrusts Daniel into a fight for his life.





	Ancient Legacy

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Yuma, the archivist: this work was originally archived at [Stargatefan.com](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Stargatefan.com). To preserve the archive, we began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [StargateFan Archive Collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/StargateFan_Archive_Collection).

“Unscheduled offworld activation!”

The announcement rang through the halls of the SGC and in General Jack O’Neill’s office. He looked up from his paperwork and grimaced as the speaker blared the message again. 

Was a team due to check in or return? He didn’t remember seeing that on his daily schedule. Searching the top of his desk for said schedule, he came up empty-handed. A quick survey of his in-box produced the same result. 

Wait. He had used a piece of paper to make that airplane while listening to someone in Pentagon scheduling rattle on about tomorrow’s top brass visit. Reaching for his trash can, he discovered someone had emptied it. On second thought, he was sure it was still on his desk—somewhere.

Meanwhile, a third message reminded him that someone was dialing in and he should probably go see who it was. Which sounded a lot more exciting than reviewing files for the meeting with the brass.

He quickly left his office and headed down the stairs to the control room. 

Arriving at Walter’s side, he glanced over the tech’s shoulder. “What’ve you got, Walter?”

“No IDC, yet, sir. SGs 3 and 9 are offworld, but not due to check in until tomorrow.”

At that moment, Daniel Jackson came bounding up the stairs, coming to stand alongside Jack.

“Hey, Daniel. What are you doin’ here?”

“Hey, Jack. Just wanted to see who was dialing our gate. SGs 3 and 9 aren’t due to check in yet, so—“

“How do you know that?”

“It was on this week’s schedule. Remember, we talked about it in Monday’s briefing?”

“Yes, Daniel, I remember Monday’s briefing,” Jack said with mock patience as he glared at Daniel.

“Receiving IDC, sir. It’s the Tok’ra.” 

“We haven’t heard from them since Jacob died,” Daniel stated.

“Oy.” It had only been a couple of months but it still hadn’t been long enough for Jack.

“Jack?” The voice held some urgency and Jack saw that Daniel was looking at him with eyebrows raised. “Don’t you think we should . . . “ Daniel’s hand turned in circles, index finger rotating as if that completed his sentence. 

“Oh, I suppose,” Jack replied with a sigh. “Walter, open the iris.”

“Yes, sir.” The reply was quick as was Walter’s hand as he pressed it to the screen.

Metallic whirring accompanied the iris retraction, revealing the blue event horizon. Several seconds ticked by and Jack exchanged a glance with Daniel. Two figures suddenly emerged from the wormhole, taking two steps before coming to a stop facing the armed SFs. 

“I don’t believe it,” Daniel said as he stared at their visitors. 

“Well, there’s something I never thought we’d see again,” Jack stated. “Just like a bad penny,” he muttered under his breath.

There on the ramp stood Anise.

Daniel and Walter both looked at Jack expectantly. Jack rolled his eyes, then bent and grasped the microphone. “Stand down.” 

The SFs relaxed and lowered their weapons as the visitors continued to stand on the ramp. As the wormhole shut down, Jack turned and headed for the stairs with Daniel on his heels. They entered the gateroom, and, as Anise caught Jack’s eye, she dipped her head and began descending the ramp with her companion, a young man carrying a small leather case.

Jack noted that she hadn’t changed much--no signs of aging, which was to be expected he decided. Her sense of fashion hadn’t changed, either; she wore a tight-fitting leather skirt and low-cut leather top along with thigh-high boots.

“General O’Neill, Doctor Jackson, it is a pleasure to see you again,” her dual voice intoned.

“Yes, it’s always a pleasure, isn’t it, Daniel?” Jack turned slightly to look at his friend.

“Welcome to the SGC,” Daniel said, ignoring Jack. “It’s been a long time since we’ve seen you.”

“Yes, it has. I have been doing research, which is why I have come. May we continue our conversation in the briefing room?”

“If we must,” Jack replied. “After you.” He made a sweeping motion with his arm. 

She dipped her head again and began walking towards the stairs, followed by her companion. As Jack fell in beside Daniel, he whispered, “Mark my words, this will not end well.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Everyone had taken seats around the briefing table--Anise and her companion on Jack’s left and Daniel on his right. 

“This is Paresh, my assistant,” Anise said. “Paresh, this is General Jack O’Neill and Doctor Daniel Jackson.”

“I am pleased to finally meet you,” the young man added. “I have heard much about you.”

“All good, I hope,” Jack commented with a smirk.

“What brings you to the SGC?” Daniel asked with a sideways glance at Jack.

“We have made what we believe is an important discovery and are in need of your assistance,” Anise replied, pinning Daniel with her gaze.

Jack looked from Anise to Daniel and back, not liking the implication of that request. “What kind of assistance?” 

Her attention moved back to Jack. “Actually, it is Doctor Jackson’s help that we require.”

The anxiety that had begun when Jack had first realized who their visitor was quickly hitched up a notch at her statement. His bad feeling was getting stronger.

“How can I help you?” Daniel asked.

“We have discovered some ruins that are Ancient in design.”

Jack watched Daniel’s eyebrows shoot upwards at that statement. Anise turned to Paresh who was opening the case he had brought. He pulled out a small device and handed it to Anise. She took it and pressed a pad on the top. A screen lit up, revealing a picture of some type of writing on what looked like stone. She handed the screen across the table and Daniel reached for it, holding it reverently as he began scrutinizing it.

The briefing room remained silent while Daniel continued to examine the writing on the screen. Until Jack couldn’t stand it anymore. “Daniel?”

Daniel lifted his head and looked at Jack, eyes wide, as though he just realized Jack was there. 

“Care to share, Daniel?”

“Uh, well, it’s Ancient, but it’s a variation I’ve never seen.”

“Can you read it?” Anise asked.

“Maybe . . . some . . . a little.” 

The room went quiet again. Jack’s glare was wasted as the other man had returned his attention to the screen. 

“Well, what does it say?”

“I’m not really sure. It talks about great power and something being hidden. It’ll take some time to work it out.” Daniel looked across at Anise. “Have you been able to decipher any of it?”

“Very little. That is why we are seeking your help—your expertise with Ancient is well-known.”

“This looks like only a portion of the entire text. Have you brought the rest for me to look at?”

“No. The writing covers an entire wall in the ruins. We did not want to risk bringing images of the entire wall, for fear of what would happen if they fell into the wrong hands.”

“Oh?” Jack was interested now. “Why would someone be interested enough to steal it?”

“We are aware of the events that occurred on Dakara. However, there are still goa’uld out there, Ba’al included, who are searching for other Ancient technology that would help them rebuild their power and possibly give them an advantage over all others.”

 

“And you think this writing describes Ancient weapons?” Jack asked.

“Yes, we do. We believe it is extremely urgent that we decipher this writing and locate any weapons or other technology before someone else finds it.”

“Well, I’m going to have to see more to be able to decipher it,” Daniel pointed out.

“Which is precisely why we wish for you to accompany us to the ruins.” 

There it was, Jack thought, the other shoe dropping. It gave Jack some small satisfaction to have the Tok’ra—especially Anise—come running to them for help, or more precisely, Daniel’s help. But at the same time, there was no way he was going to send Daniel offworld with this woman, treaty or no treaty.

“Daniel is pretty valuable to the SGC. I don’t think we can spare him right now.”

“Jack?” A glance at Daniel revealed pinched eyebrows and a set jaw. Daniel wasn’t going to let this go easily.

“No, Daniel.” _Like that’s gonna work._

“Jack, this could really be important.”

“It’s always important, Daniel. We need you here, so, no.”

“General O’Neill,” Anise interrupted, “The council feels this is most urgent and wishes to remind you of the treaty between our people.”

“Jack, there’s nothing urgent for me to work on here. I think I should go.”

“Daniel, Carter’s off playing at Area 51 and Teal’c’s off working with Bra’tac getting the Jaffa organized. And I have a big meeting with the brass tomorrow, which means SG-1 is unavailable.”

“Doctor Jackson will be well-protected while he is with us,” Anise placated. “You need not send a team with him.”

“Not gonna happen. Daniel’s not going anywhere without backup.”

“SG-7 is the next team in line for a mission—they could go with me,” Daniel suggested.

Jack suddenly wondered how they had gone from Daniel not going to deciding which team was going to accompany him.

“That would be acceptable, General. But we must hurry.” Anise didn’t give Jack time to disagree. “How soon can you be ready to leave, Doctor Jackson?” 

“Just give me a couple of hours to get some things wrapped up and I’ll be ready to go.”

“Now just hold on a minute,” Jack ordered. When he had everyone’s attention, he turned to Daniel and saw the eagerness in his eyes. He already knew what the answer would be but he asked the question anyway, hoping Daniel would at least take a minute to think it over. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yes, Jack.” The answer came without hesitation. _So much for thinking it over._ Daniel continued, “We need to figure this out before one of the goa’uld becomes aware of it.”

Daniel paused, seeing the concern etched on Jack’s face. “I’ll be fine, Jack.”

Jack sighed deeply and looked from Daniel to Anise. He knew what the answer would be if they took this to his superiors; with the prospect of more Ancient weapons looming, they wouldn’t be able to get Daniel through the gate fast enough. He was stuck. “All right. Daniel can go with you, accompanied by SG-7. But I’m only gonna say this once—he’d better come back in perfect health or you can kiss that treaty goodbye.”

Anise looked suitably chastised. “You have my word, General.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Stepping to the doorway of the room, Jack silently observed the man who was stuffing books into his pack like a kid who was just told he was going to Disneyland. Jack had tried to think of an argument that would keep Daniel here, but none of his ideas sounded convincing, even to himself. 

Jack always worried about his team—and they were still his team, even if he wasn’t going through the gate with them anymore—whenever they went offworld without him. And now, not only was Daniel going through the gate without him, he was going without the rest of SG-1, too. He really had a bad feeling about this. There was just one argument he hadn’t ruled out and it was time to give it a shot.

He strode nonchalantly into the room and stopped next to Daniel’s desk.

“Daniel.”

Daniel paused in his packing and looked up. “Hey, Jack. Almost ready.” He went back to organizing his pack, sticking some power bars into one pocket.

“Uh, Daniel.” Daniel looked up at him but didn’t stop his packing. Jack forged ahead. “Are you sure you want to go off with her? Alone?”

Daniel did stop then and gave Jack his full attention, so Jack continued. “You know, seeing how the snake has a ‘thing’ for you?”

Daniel’s eyebrows climbed past the rim of his glasses. “A ‘thing’?”

“Yeah, you know—the ‘hots’?”

Daniel’s face twisted into a grimace. “I’d forgotten about that.” He paused. “That’s just . . . disturbing.”

“I know!” Jack agreed.

“Thanks for reminding me, but I’m still going.” Daniel returned to his packing.

“Well, you can’t blame me for trying.”

Jack could see Daniel trying to suppress a smile. Securing the closures on his pack, he faced Jack again.

“I’ll be fine, Jack. SG-7 will be with me. If there really are more Ancient weapons out there, we need to find them before the goa’uld do.”

“I know,” Jack agreed softly. “I just wish SG-1 were going with you and the Tok’ra _weren’t_.”

Daniel placed a hand on Jack’s shoulder. “So do I.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A short time later Jack and Daniel were standing at the foot of the gate ramp, along with Anise, Paresh, and SG-7. The seventh chevron locked into place and the liquid cloud whooshed outward from the gate, settling into the rippling event horizon.

“Well, you kids behave yourselves and don’t forget to call home,” Jack said.

“I didn’t realize we were going to summer camp, Jack,” Daniel replied with a smirk.

“Playing in some ruins is probably like going to camp for you, Daniel,” Jack retorted. Turning to the leader of SG-7, he instructed, “Major, check in is in twenty-four hours—don’t be late.”

“Yes, sir,” Major McKenna responded. 

The members of SG-7 moved into position, surrounding Daniel and he glanced back to see Jack smiling. 

“Hey, Doctor J,” Lieutenant Carson said as he took his place beside Daniel, “We’ve got your six.” 

_And apparently my three and nine as well,_ Daniel thought looking at his escort. This was definitely Jack’s doing. “Hi, Luke, it’s good to have you along.” 

“Lookin’ forward to it,” the lieutenant replied with a smile. 

“Let’s move out,” Major McKenna ordered, moving into position in front of Daniel. 

Jack watched as Anise and Paresh led the way, followed by McKenna, Daniel and SG-7. Just before stepping through the gate, Daniel turned and gave a nod of his head to Jack. Then they were gone and the gate shut down, leaving the room silent. Jack continued to stare at the inactive gate for a few seconds, remembering the private conversation he’d had with Major McKenna. _Do not, under any circumstances, leave Daniel alone, even for a second. At the first sign of trouble, yank him out of there—and be prepared for a fight if you do. And don’t trust the Tok’ra._ Other instructions had been given, but those were the most important. Jack turned and headed for his office, wishing he were going with Daniel instead of preparing for tomorrow’s meeting. Sometimes being “the man” sucked.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Daniel stepped out of the gate into bright sunshine. Lifting a hand to shade his eyes, he scanned his surroundings. 

 

The gate sat on a stone platform in a clearing in the midst of a dense green forest. The air was warm and carried the pungent smell of mossy earth and decaying wood. Insects buzzed the air and colorful birds flitted from tree to tree. 

He breathed deeply, savoring the feeling of traveling through the gate to _explore_. They weren’t here to fight the goa’uld or the replicators; they were here to decipher an ancient language and unlock its secrets. How long had it been since he had done that? Too long. And yes, it might lead to Ancient weapons but he tried not to focus on that—he preferred to think of being able to work at his leisure, not under impossible time constraints to finish. Well, except for the fact that Jack had given him five days. But, if he was making progress he knew he’d be able to talk Jack into extending the deadline. 

SG-7 exited the gate behind him, weapons raised. The two Tok’ra had stopped at the base of the gate platform. Anise held her hand up, signaling for the rest of them to stop. She announced to the forest, “This is Anise. We have returned from Earth—our mission was successful. It is safe to show yourselves.”

Movement in the trees caught Daniel’s attention and he watched as four Tok’ra—spread evenly around the gate—revealed themselves. They stood facing the travelers, zats raised. 

Anise turned to SG-7’s leader. “Major McKenna, please ask your men to lower their weapons.” 

Major McKenna shifted uncomfortably, looking over the Tok’ra facing them. Daniel could tell he was reluctant to do so. This wasn’t getting them off on the right foot.

“Please Major, they’re our allies,” Daniel urged. 

Major McKenna glanced at Daniel, then turned to his men. “Lower your weapons.”

SG-7 did as ordered and the Tok’ra followed suit, putting away their zats before moving to join the group at the gate. Daniel inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. He hoped things wouldn’t be this tense the entire time they were working here. 

“You must be Doctor Jackson,” one of the new Tok’ra said. He looked like a man in his early thirties (who knew how old he really was, thanks to the symbiote), with light brown hair and green eyes. 

“Yes, I am,” Daniel replied, extending his hand.

The Tok’ra grasped it, smiling. “I am Trovahn. I have admired your work for quite some time and am pleased you have come to lend your expertise.” 

“Thank you. I’m happy to be here. I hope I can be of help to you.”

“It is getting late and we have some distance to travel to reach the ruins.” Anise had told them it was about a two hour walk from the gate. 

Daniel searched for a path and spotted a narrow dirt trail leading away from the gate before becoming lost in the trees. It appeared to be the only one, and looked as though they would be lucky to be able to walk two abreast. 

They organized themselves so there were two Tok’ra in the lead, followed by Major McKenna and Lieutenant Roth. Anise and Daniel were next, followed by rest of the Tok’ra and the other two members of SG-7. 

Daniel clipped his sunglasses on and adjusted his pack. He was already sweating in the brilliant sunshine before they’d even begun walking. The travelers headed down the path, conversation minimal as each concentrated on their footing—avoiding the numerous tree roots covering the trail. 

A few minutes into their hike, the path began winding through an area strewn with large boulders. As Daniel reached out to steady himself, the unmistakable sound of zats firing filled the air. He reached for his sidearm as he dove to the ground, scrambling behind a boulder where he was joined by Major McKenna. 

Daniel searched the area, seeing Griffen and Matthews unconscious on the path. Lieutenant Carson had taken cover behind the boulder next to them. 

“Lieutenant,” McKenna called out, “get Doctor Jackson back to the gate.”

“No! I’m not leaving,” Daniel countered. 

“General O’Neill gave me specific orders,” McKenna said as he fired at whoever was shooting at them from the boulders on the opposite side of the path. 

“I don’t care,” Daniel continued to resist. He had lost track of Anise and the rest of their Tok’ra escort. Who the hell was shooting at them? Who even knew they were here?

Suddenly, zats sounded from behind him and Daniel watched as McKenna was enveloped by the familiar blue electrical charge, dropping him to the ground. Turning quickly, Daniel saw three Tok’ra facing him, zats raised. A sideways glance revealed Carson had also been felled.

“You are surrounded, Doctor Jackson,” Anise’s voice sounded as she stepped from behind the boulder. “Drop the weapon.” Trovahn and another Tok’ra stepped around the boulder to join her. 

He slowly rose, weapon still in hand, and turned to Anise. “What’s going on?”

“I am sorry, Doctor Jackson. We need you and this was the only way we could get you alone.”

“I’ve already agreed to help you. Why do you need me alone? SG-7 wouldn’t have interfered with our work.”

“I am afraid they _would_ have interfered when they discovered our work does not involve translations.”

Daniel was really confused now. They weren’t working on translations? “What _are_ we working on?”

“It will all be explained when we reach our destination. Please, give your weapon to Trovahn.” 

Oh, this was so not good. “Uh, I think I’d like to hang on to it until I get some answers.” 

“We do not have time for this,” Anise continued. “All will be explained to you, but now we must go.” 

Trovahn stepped closer to Daniel and reached out for the weapon. “You are outnumbered—please hand it over.”

Six zats were trained on him. He might be able to take out one or two of them, but not all. And did he really want to kill them? Choose your battles. They hadn’t hurt him--yet--so there was always the chance he could talk his way out of this at some point. Knowing he didn’t have much choice, he reluctantly held his weapon out and let Trovahn take it from him. 

“Thank you, Doctor Jackson,” Anise said. “Now, please, let us return to the stargate.”

_The gate?_ Then they weren’t going to stay on this planet. He knew that would make it next to impossible for the SGC to find him. Where were they going? What did they need him for that they didn’t want the SGC to know about? The situation was getting worse by the minute. 

Four Tok’ra surrounded him, zats still trained on him, and urged him to start walking. As they stepped back onto the path, he saw four more Tok’ra, two of whom were working on securing the hands of the unconscious members of SG-7. The other two headed toward McKenna and Carson. 

“What are you going to do with SG-7?” 

“They will be left where your people can find them.” 

Daniel stopped suddenly. “You’re leaving them here? Something might happen to them. Wild animals or—“

“They will be protected from harm,” Anise interrupted him. “We must hurry—keep moving.”

One guard grabbed him by the shoulder and turned him back in the direction they had been going, giving him a shove. With a last glance back at the men who were being left behind, Daniel resumed his trek back to the gate.

In a few minutes they reached the clearing where the stargate sat. Anise stopped the group in front of the DHD. She turned and faced Daniel, giving orders to his guards. “Prepare him.”

That didn’t sound good and Daniel lashed out at the guard who moved close to him, knocking the zat out of his hand. Before Daniel could strike again, a blow to the back of his head sent him to his knees. Hands grabbed his arms and pulled him upright again. 

“Please do not make this more difficult,” Anise pleaded, looking truly distressed.

Daniel rubbed the back of his head while other hands searched him, removing his GDO, radio, knife, and finally his pack. 

“Maybe if you’d tell me what’s going on,” he said angrily.

“In due time.” She turned away from him and faced the gate.

The hands searching him grasped his wrists and pulled them behind his back. He felt metal snap around them, securing them in place. Next, his glasses were removed and a piece of cloth covered his eyes and was secured at the back of his head. Panic flared briefly in his chest. Now even _he_ wouldn’t know where he was. How had a simple request for help from an ally turned into a kidnapping? And how could he stop them from taking him through the gate? 

“You’re jeopardizing our treaty,” he warned.

There was no response as he heard the DHD symbols being pressed and the ring begin to turn. 

“Anise, it’s not too late. Let me go and we can still talk about this.”

His words were ignored again. The gate finished locking and Daniel heard the familiar whoosh of the wormhole connecting. Hands latched on to his upper arms and he was led up the steps and into the unknown.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Daniel felt off-balance as he exited the wormhole. Blindfolded and without the use of his arms, he stumbled and would have fallen but the hands gripping him steadied him and prevented it. 

Guided down the steps, Daniel was then pulled forward. Evidently, he wasn’t going to be allowed to see his surroundings since no one removed the blindfold. The path beneath his feet was fairly smooth—possibly dirt—and he was able to walk at a decent pace with only a couple of stumbles. Occasionally, the path rose and fell over small hills. The sun beat warmly down, only rarely obscured by what Daniel assumed were trees. 

He couldn’t tell how much time had passed, but eventually he was guided down a somewhat steeper path that ended in complete shade. Here the group stopped and he heard a scraping sound. 

Daniel was pushed forward again into cooler air and onto a floor that was hard and smooth like stone. The blindfold was suddenly pulled away and he blinked until his eyes adjusted to the light. He glanced around at the familiar crystal walls of a Tok’ra tunnel.

“This way,” Anise directed. 

Hands still bound, Daniel followed her through the tunnel, guards still surrounding him. They passed a couple of connecting tunnels, but overall, the place seemed small. Definitely not like the large complexes on Vorash and Ravanna. He only saw two other Tok’ra on their trek, making him wonder where everyone was. 

After a very short walk, the group stopped at the entrance to a small room. Daniel was guided inside, and while three of the guards stood with zats aimed at him, the fourth released his bound hands. 

“You may rest here for awhile. I will send someone for you when we are ready to talk with you.” Anise’s voice had changed—it was human. This was the host, Freya. 

“Can’t you tell me what’s going on?”

“All will be explained shortly. I am sorry you must wait. Please know that this is very important, Doctor Jackson. We do need your help.” She turned and moved back to the doorway. “I will have some food sent to you.” 

“Wait—“

But she had already left the room. Cell, actually, he thought. _Might as well call it what it is._ The guards outside the door pressed a control and Daniel saw the shimmer of a force field fill the doorway.

Turning back to the room, he saw there was a small sleeping platform against one wall and a small, round table with a single chair against another. He dropped down on the cot, rubbing his sore wrists, and tried to figure out what the Tok’ra could possibly want that would make them go to such lengths to get him alone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Daniel still had his watch and was able to see that an hour had passed since he’d been brought to this room—cell—whatever. A half hour had gone by since they’d brought him a plate of food and some water. Between the hike from the gate and the time he’d been in his cell, he’d had plenty of time to contemplate why he’d been kidnapped. He knew it must be pretty important to the Tok’ra if they were willing to risk their treaty with Earth. 

But what did they want him for if not to translate? They had access to all of the SGC’s mission reports and had been brought up-to-date on current events when Jacob died. So, he couldn’t tell them anything they didn’t already know. Unless . . . What if they _thought_ he could tell them more? An uneasiness began to settle over him.

Just then, Anise appeared in the doorway. “Doctor Jackson, we are ready for you.” The voice indicated that the symbiote was back.

The force field on the doorway lifted and the guards in the hall raised their zats and aimed them at him. “Please come with me.”

Daniel knew it wouldn’t do much good to resist; the only way he was going to get answers was to go talk with the Council. He moved towards the door and a guard held out what looked like a pair of silver bracelets. 

“That’s not necessary,” he said, stiffening. 

Anise looked at him earnestly. “Will you cooperate?”

“I give you my word,” he replied, hoping this meant he would remain free.

Anise began to smile, but quickly sobered. “Very well. Those won’t be needed, Alevron.”

The guard glanced from Anise to Daniel and back, his lips parting as though he wanted to protest. Instead, he put the cuffs away without a word and stepped aside so Daniel could pass. It was then Daniel realized this was the guard he had punched.

Anise led the way, Daniel surrounded by guards, and they quickly arrived at another room. Daniel expected to see a large meeting room like the one on Ravanna, but instead found himself in a much smaller space. There was an average-size round table in the center of the room, with eight chairs spaced around it. Four of those chairs were occupied by Tok’ra, the rest empty. Daniel began to wonder if the Tok’ra population was decreasing faster than they had thought. He recognized two of the Tok’ra, Paresh and Trovahn, but not the other two—a man with brown hair and eyes who looked to be in his forties, and a woman with dark hair and green eyes, probably in her thirties. Anise indicated Daniel should sit and took the chair next to him. 

The Tok’ra he didn’t know spoke. “I am Gairven and this is Melaina. It is good to finally meet you, Doctor Jackson.”

“Well, I would say the same if I hadn’t been kidnapped and brought here against my will.”

“We are sorry for that,” Gairven said, “but we could not take the chance that someone would find this place.”

“Earth is your ally.” Daniel’s frustration seeped into his words. “Why does the High Council need to hide from us?”

The other Tok’ra glanced uncomfortably at each other, but Gairven continued to hold Daniel’s gaze as he answered. “Because we are not the High Council.” 

“Excuse me?” What the heck was going on?

“We are a group of mostly scientists working without the knowledge or approval of the High Council.”

Renegade Tok’ra? Daniel’s gut clenched. What was their agenda? Why would they feel the need to conceal their activities from the High Council? And why did they need him?

“What do you want?” he asked warily.

Anise took over from Gairven. “We have been quite interested in events that have taken place over the past two years, since your return to human form.”

There was no question in Daniel’s mind where this was leading. General Hammond had managed to put a stop to Area 51’s demands that they get a chance to “study” him after his first return from the higher plane with a well-placed call to the President. Jack had done the same after his second, more recent return. If his own people wanted to study him, he shouldn’t be surprised that the Tok’ra did, too. 

Only they weren’t making a request. A secret faction had kidnapped him and taken him God knew where, and he had a feeling they weren’t going to settle for asking him a few questions. They probably weren’t going to take “I don’t remember” for an answer and just send him on his way. These were scientists; they arrived at answers by study and experimentation. 

He had to put a stop to this—there was no way he was going to let them poke around in his brain and possibly succeed in gaining access to Ancient knowledge, if there was any there for them to find. 

“If you’ve read the reports you know I can’t remember anything from when I was ascended.”

“That is what you have stated _officially,_ ” Anise stressed the word, “but we know you have, on occasion, been able to access that knowledge. You remembered the location of Bra’tac and Ry’ac and aided in their rescue. You were also able to stop the replicators while one of the human form replicator probed you mind.”

“Those were unusual situations. I can’t just tap into a well of Ancient knowledge whenever I feel like it.”

“As we understand it, the second time you descended, you returned to human form of your own volition. You were not sent back by the Others and did not have your memory erased. We believe you still hold that knowledge and, with our help, it can be accessed.”

_Damn._ They had read the SGC reports. The last thing he wanted was for someone—anyone—to be able to tap into the knowledge of the Ancients. He didn’t trust anyone, Earth or the Tok’ra, to use that knowledge wisely. And he wasn’t sure what would happen to him if the knowledge were released. Thoughts of Jack slowly deteriorating as the Ancient knowledge overwrote his brain flashed through his mind. Not something he wanted to experience personally.

“What if I say no?”

The Tok’ra fidgeted uncomfortably again. Anise reached over and placed a hand on his arm, but it was Freya’s voice that spoke. “Doctor Jackson, I cannot stress how important this is. The victory at Dakara did not rid the galaxy of the goa’uld. There are still some out there and we must do whatever we can to protect ourselves and to prevent them from rebuilding their power. Please, you must help us.”

Daniel took a deep, calming breath. How could he get them to understand? “The power of the Ancients is too great for anyone—human or Tok’ra—to handle. We don’t need it to defeat the remaining goa’uld. Their power has been greatly diminished and they have lost their Jaffa armies. Don’t ask me to do this.”

The room was silent for a few seconds before Gairven spoke. “I am sorry, Doctor Jackson, but we do not agree. We were hoping you would help us willingly, but your consent is not required. Trovahn, is everything ready?”

“It is.”

“Then take Doctor Jackson and prepare him immediately.”

His plea had fallen on deaf ears—he was out of options. He didn’t know what they had in mind, but he didn’t want any part of it. Trovahn and Paresh left their seats and moved around the table towards him. Daniel glanced at Anise—Freya—whoever, and saw the sad, resigned look in her eyes. He would get no support from her.

There was obviously a small number of Tok’ra here. That meant there was a chance—a slim one—that he could get away and make it back to the gate. It was worth a try. Before Trovahn and Paresh could take hold of him, he jumped up, picking up his chair and tossing it at Trovahn, who was closest. He dove for the door and headed into the hallway, surprising the guard standing outside. The man reached for his zat, but Daniel was quicker, swinging his right fist at the man’s jaw. The blow knocked the Tok’ra to the floor and Daniel took off down the hall, the sound of footsteps following him.

He turned a corner and continued running, passing a couple of startled Tok’ra along the way. Turning another corner, he came face to face with two Tok’ra, zats aimed straight at him. He lifted his hands in surrender just as a stream of blue energy enveloped him. He didn’t feel the impact as his limp body hit the floor.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

His head felt fuzzy and there was a dull throb behind his eyes. Sounds began to filter through the haze and he was soon able to distinguish them as voices. Daniel decided to risk opening his eyes, shutting them tightly as light sent spikes of pain through his head. He tried again, more slowly, and was able to distinguish a plain, bare wall in front of him. He also determined that he was sitting upright. Starting to turn his head to scan his surroundings, he discovered he couldn’t move it. Panicking, he tried to move his arms and legs, finding he was totally immobilized.

A face leaned into his field of vision—it was Anise.

“Doctor Jackson? How are you feeling?”

“Peachy. What’s going on?” He tried to keep his voice steady.

“We are ready to begin our first attempt at accessing the Ancient knowledge.”

Daniel felt her press something against his temple and push; he flinched as it sent a jab of pain through his head. A memory device.

“Don’t do this.” He tried to move against his restraints, but they held him fast.

“You have experienced the memory device before so you are familiar with how it works,” she continued, ignoring his plea. “We will begin at a low setting.”

Anise touched the control device to the disk on his temple and he stiffened. A screen was rolled in front of him showing what looked like static on a TV screen. The lines of static began to jump around and Daniel focused all of his attention on clearing his mind. 

“What do you remember of the accident on Kelowna?” Gairven’s voice was at his ear.

A quick flash of Jonas’ face appeared on the screen and disappeared, followed by another flash of the window breaking as he hurled himself through it. That too faded, leaving the screen in static again as Daniel concentrated harder.

“What did you feel when you were dying of radiation poisoning?”

Daniel’s breathing sped up as faint images appeared on the screen and began to sharpen: Janet’s face leaning over him, whispering words of comfort, a nurse with a roll of bandages, Sam crying, Jack sitting with his head in his hand. He worked on slowing his breathing, not letting his mind wander from the images of his friends’ faces, drawing strength from thoughts of their friendship.

“Was there much pain?”

He continued to focus on his friends, trying to avoid thinking about the horrible pain he had felt. He knew they were trying to find something that would break down his defenses. Slowly, pain did begin to form, starting in his center and radiating out through his arms and legs, intensifying. It was like experiencing his death all over again. He knew he couldn’t take this for long.

“What did you feel when your body became energy?”

An image of Jack flashed on the screen, his voice soft, “Jacob, stop.” Panting with the pain, Daniel forced his mind to think of Jack: Jack fishing, Jack watching hockey, Jack playing with his artifacts. The images created a slide show on the screen. The pain began to ease, but his body continued to tingle with pins and needles.

“This is not effective,” Gairven stated. “His mind is too strong. Increase the intensity two levels.”

Anise looked from Daniel to Gairven and back, hesitating briefly before touching the control to the disk on his temple. A buzzing filled his ears and he tried to stay focused.

“What did you see when your body ascended?”

Sweat began to run down his face and neck and his body quivered as he strained to resist focusing on the question, instead keeping images of Jack in his mind.

“Did you see Oma Desala?”

The screen flickered but the images of Jack remained. Jack eating pie, Jack walking up the ramp to the gate.

“Did you meet other ascended?”

Daniel knew he needed to find another way to resist. He began to mentally review the meditation steps Teal’c had taught him, hoping to relax his body while staying in control. 

As he calmed himself, the screen began to settle into a plain, gray fuzz.

“What happened?” Gairven asked.

“I’m not sure,” Trovahn replied. 

“His vital signs are slowing,” he heard Paresh add.

“He is using a technique to calm himself, much like kel’no’reem,” Anise said.

“All right, let us introduce another stimulus,” Gairved directed. 

“Gairven, maybe we should let him rest for awhile and make another attempt later,” Anise suggested. 

“No, we must try now. You know that we could be discovered at any moment. The High Council will be searching as soon as they realize all of us are gone. And when their people do no check in, the Tau’ri will discover the deception and will stop at nothing to get Doctor Jackson back,” Gairven reasoned. “They will look on us move favorably if we are able to provide them with important Ancient knowledge.” 

Trovahn stepped up to Daniel and pulled the neck of his t-shirt down, pressing a small, round disk to is chest. Another was pressed to the temple opposite the memory device. 

Trovahn moved away and Anise stepped close to Daniel so that she was looking him in the eye. She placed a hand on his cheek. “I am sorry, Doct—Daniel.”

“Please . . . help me,” he whispered in a voice ragged with pain. 

She shook her head. “I can’t. Just give them what they want and this will all be over.”

A tear trickled from his eye and she reached out with her finger, tenderly wiping it away. “I’m sorry,” she repeated before moving out of his line of sight.

“Everyone clear? All right, begin,” Gairven directed.

Pain like white-hot fire seized his body and he jerked in his restraints, a scream ripping from him before he lost consciousness. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Morning, Walter.” Jack was met by the sergeant as he climbed the stairs to the briefing room. He’d already been at the SGC for several hours, but had yet to make it to his office. 

“Morning, sir.”

“It’s an exciting day, Walter.”

“It is, sir?”

“Oh, yes. A big meeting with the Washington big wigs. What could be more exciting?”

“Uh, I don’t know, sir.”

The reached the briefing room and Jack headed for his office. “Then you need to get out more, sergeant.” 

Walter stopped walking. “Yes, sir, I mean . . . yes, sir. Oh, there’s someone waiting for you in—“

As Jack reached his door, a figure stepped into view.

“General Hammond!”

“Hello, Jack.”

“I didn’t expect to see you until the meeting, sir. You’re here early.”

“Yes, I am. I have something I want to discuss with you before the meeting.”

The pleasant expression that had graced the general’s face shifted, becoming more serious. 

“Okay, have a seat.” Jack closed the door and took his own seat behind the desk. It struck him how odd it was to be on this side and Hammond on the other. How many times had they been here, roles reversed?

Hammond sat down, leaning slightly forward, contributing to the sense of seriousness in the air.

“Jack, I’m going to lay it out for you. At the meeting this afternoon, a reassignment of personnel is going to be discussed.”

Ah, oh. That didn’t sound good. Jack braced himself for Hammond’s next words.

“The Pentagon and the IOA agree that they would like to see Colonel Carter stay on at Area 51. They believe that, with the goa’uld threat pretty much eliminated, her expertise would be put to better use in research.”

“What about SG-1? She’s still the team leader.”

Hammond looked as though he was about to deliver more bad news. “It’s not just Colonel Carter, Jack. They want to reassign Doctor Jackson, too. You know he put in a request to go to Atlantis.”

Yeah, he did. And he had been pretty pissed about it. But he knew how important this was to Daniel, and he wouldn’t stand in his way. “Yes, sir, I’m aware of that. And I also know Teal’c plans to spend most of his time getting the Jaffa nation on its feet.”

Jack felt a now familiar twinge of sadness at the thought of his teammates going their separate ways. Even though he no longer went through the gate with them, there was something comforting about knowing the rest of them were still a team and were still going through the gate.

Hammond shifted, leaning even closer to the desk. “That’s not all, Jack.”

He searched Hammond’s face, trying to figure out how bad this was going to be. But he was patient and waited for the general to continue.

“The President has asked me to leave the position of Head of Homeworld Security and become a special advisor to him.”

Now he couldn’t keep quiet. “But, general, we need you there—the SGC needs someone who will look after its interests in Washington.”

“I agree, and so does the President.”

Jack didn’t see how that would be possible without Hammond. “But—“

Hammond held up a hand to cut him off. “That’s why we have chosen you to take over the position.” 

Jack couldn’t finish his sentence and was having trouble forming a new one. They wanted _him_ to be Head of Homeworld Security? That would mean leaving the SGC, leaving his team, and going to Washington. He was just getting the hang of being “the man” at the SGC; how could he be “the man” at Homeland Security? “They actually want _me_?”

“It was my recommendation. In fact, my one stipulation for leaving the post was that you would be my replacement. The President was in agreement.”

“Really—he was?”

Hammond chuckled then. “Yes, Jack, he was. You know this place and these people better than anyone and that’s who we need in Washington looking out for them.”

Jack pursed his lips as he considered what this would mean. Could he leave his team? Of course, Hammond had just said they would all be moving on to new projects. Maybe it was time he did, too. But who would run the SGC? If they didn’t pick the right person, things could fall apart, just like they had under General Bauer.

“Have they chosen someone to run the SGC?”

“No, that will be your job. To be approved by the President and the IOA, of course. Does this mean you’ll take the job?”

Did it? He needed a little time to think it through. “I’d like to give it some thought. You know, sleep on it, mull it over, run it up the flagpole and—“

“I get it, Jack.” Hammond cut him off.

“How long do I have to decide?”

“A couple of days. The IOA isn’t exactly a patient group.”

“Oookay. I’ll let you know. And General, thanks for the heads up.”

“Anytime, Jack.”

Glancing at the clock, Jack said, “It’s almost time for Daniel and SG-7 to check in. Wanna come down and say ‘hello’?”

“I’d like that. I miss seeing everyone here.”

They left Jack’s office and headed for the control room. Walter greeted them. “General Hammond, it’s good to have you here, sir.”

“Thank you. It’s good to be here.”

Jack glanced at his watch—a couple of minutes past check-in. No big deal.

The two generals continued to stand, watching the big ring below—the big, silent ring. Normal activity continued in the control room, with Walter giving them an occasional sideways glance.

Ten minutes came and went and still the gate remained quiet. Jack exchanged looks with Hammond, and he suddenly felt a pang of remorse for all the times the general had had to wait on SG-1 to check-in. 

“Give them a few minutes, Jack,” General Hammond said quietly.

Another five minutes was all Jack could take. He knew Major McKenna wouldn’t miss a check-in—even by a few minutes--and risk Jack’s wrath, unless something was preventing him from doing so.

“Walter, dial it up.”

“Yes, sir.” The sergeant began the dialing sequence while Jack stood trying to keep from thinking the worst. 

The wormhole engaged and Walter made the radio call. “This is Stargate Command calling Doctor Jackson and SG-7. Please respond.”

Silence. Walter made another request for contact but the radio remained silent. A third call was made with the same result.

“Shut it down, Sergeant, and get SG-3 up here ASAP. Tell Reynolds that I want to talk to him.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And Walter—“

“I’ll contact Colonel Carter and Teal’c, sir.”

Tight-lipped, Jack dipped his head in appreciation before he and Hammond headed for the stairs.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

His entire body ached, muscles too sore to move, and his head felt like it was in a vise. 

Daniel slowly opened his eyes, blinking until they adjusted to the light. 

“How are you feeling?”

Daniel turned his head towards the voice, happy to find he could move it, and found himself looking at Anise’s concerned face. But the voice had been human, which meant this was Freya.

“Been better.” His own voice was raspy, his throat dry.

“Here.” Freya held a cup and slipped a hand beneath his head to help him lift it. He took a sip, then another longer drink before putting his head back down.

He could tell he was back in his cell, but was relieved to find he was unrestrained. Which was a moot point since he hurt too much to move. And why was that?

“What happened?” His voice sounded only slightly better.

“There was a malfunction.” Anise was back. “The equipment issued a much stronger charge than it should have. I am sorry.”

“Yeah, well, that’s comforting. I didn’t know the Tok’ra were into torture.”

“They were trying to find a way to break through to your subconscious. I believe this knowledge could be very valuable but I do not agree with some of their methods. I am truly sorry for what has happened.”

“Then help me get out of here, or contact the SGC.”

“I cannot. I would be stopped before I could reach the gate.”

Daniel knew there was no way he could make it to the gate—he didn’t think he could even get up from the platform he was lying on. The vise around his head tightened, making it throb. He closed his eyes, too tired to argue. A shiver ran through his limbs and he felt a blanket pulled up to his chin and a hand gently grasp his arm.

“It is a residual effect from the device. It will not last.”

“Don’t . . . let them use it again,” he pleaded, eyes still closed.

“They are going to try another method. Please don’t try to resist. Let them in—let them have what they’re looking for and they will let you go.”

“Please . . . no . . . “ He didn’t think he could take much more, didn’t know how he could stop them from gaining access to the Ancient knowledge.

“I won’t let them go too far—I promise.”

He felt soft lips press a kiss to his forehead before he lost the battle to stay awake.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The air in the SGC briefing room was full of tension. 

Jack sat at the head of the table, Hammond, Sam and Teal’c on his left and Colonel Reynolds and Major McKenna on his right. Walter’s calls had brought Sam and Teal’c back before SG-5 had even returned from the planet.

They had sent a MALP first, then Reynolds had led SG-3 through the gate. Eventually, they had discovered SG-7 inside a containment field a short distance down a rough path leading from the gate.

SG-7, hands bound, was unhurt and the control for the containment field had been left in plain sight just outside the field, along with the team’s packs and radios. They hadn’t seen who attacked them, but Jack was getting a clear picture of the Tok’ra being their main suspects. The only thing missing had been Daniel, and what the Tok’ra wanted with him that required this elaborate set-up, Jack couldn’t guess. Actually, there was one other thing they didn’t have—a gate address to wherever they’d taken Daniel.

The silence that had fallen over the room was broken by the blaring announcement of another unscheduled offworld activation. Jack leapt from his chair and headed for the stairs, followed closely by Sam and Teal’c. Everyone else left the table and moved to the window, looking down on the gateroom as SFs filed in, taking positions around the room, weapons raised.

As Jack, Sam, and Teal’c reached the control room, Walter called out, “It’s the Tok’ra, sir.” 

Jack didn’t hesitate. “Open the iris.”

Relief that this might be Daniel returning was tempered by the fear that something had happened to him and this was just the Tok’ra bringing the bad news. When did they ever bring good news?

The iris opened and everyone waited anxiously for someone to come through. Then the event horizon rippled as two figures emerged, took a few steps on to the ramp and stopped, looking upward to the control room. 

Two Tok’ra. And neither of them was Anise. Jack’s heart plummeted to his shoes. He collected himself and managed to announce, “Stand down,” before heading for the gate room.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Daniel was back in the chair, only this time it was reclined slightly so he was looking at the ceiling. And he was restrained again, although he hadn’t even had the energy to walk here on his own, much less put up a fight. His arms and legs were still burning, as though they had been pushed to their limits, and his head throbbed in time with his heartbeat.

Apparently, he’d been allowed to sleep for awhile. He had awakened to find Anise waiting with the 'morning meal', as she called it. But he hadn’t had an appetite, and only managed to take a couple of bites and a few sips of water. 

Two guards had half-carried, half-dragged him back to the chair room. Again, he had pleaded with them to reconsider; had reminded them of the damage they were doing to their alliance. He had been ignored, even by Anise, and had fallen silent, trying to conserve his energy for what was to come. 

Anise moved into his line of sight. “We are ready to begin. Remember what I told you. This will be much easier on you if you do not fight it.”

“This is a mistake. You can still stop it,” he whispered.

Once again Anise reached out and placed a hand on his cheek. Her lips parted as though she was going to speak, but then they closed and she looked away. The hand left his cheek and she moved away.

Paresh moved close to him and Daniel felt a hand on his arm, followed by something cold and smooth being pressed against his forearm and then strapped to it. There was a small prick of his skin and he began to feel something warm slowly seep into his arm.

_Oh, God!_ They were drugging him. What were they giving him? He had no strength to protest, so he lay still, waiting to feel the effects of whatever they’d given him. 

The warmth spread up his arm and slowly began inching its way across his chest. Lightheaded, he closed his eyes, unable to hold them open, feeling the last of his strength fading. He didn’t think he could continue to resist, which was probably the purpose of the drug. 

A faint, tingling sensation filled his limbs and he felt like he was floating. It would be so easy to give in to the pleasant feeling, but a small part of him told him to resist it.

“Are we ready?” Gairven’s voice drifted into his cocoon.

Daniel felt the memory device being pressed to his temple again, but he didn’t flinch this time. 

“Doctor Jackson? Can you hear me?”

“mmmm . . . “ _Don’t answer. Don’t let them in._

“Good. Now, tell us about the replicator ship you were taken to.”

Images of the interior of the ship drifted into Daniel’s mind—angled walls made of steel-colored replicator blocks. 

“What happened when the Carter replicator confronted you?”

Sam’s face appeared—but not really Sam. Same hair, same face, but the eyes were different—these were cold and unfeeling. Suddenly, he could feel the replicator blocks surrounding his ankles and wrists, securing him to the wall. The blocks on either side of his head began to move, extending until they encased his entire head except for his face, assuring that he could only look forward—at _her._ “Shall we begin?” not Carter said.

“His heart rate is increasing,” Anise stated.

“Is it within acceptable levels?” Gairven asked.

“Yes.”

“Then continue to monitor it,” Gairven instructed. “What did the replicator do?” he asked Daniel.

The images shifted, and, instead of Replicator Carter’s face, he was looking into the eyes of Oma Desala. “Daniel, I did not take your memories from you.”

They were getting too close. Could he keep them from finding the knowledge the replicator had tapped into? Maybe there was a way. 

Daniel ceased fighting the drug and relaxed into the floating sensation. He began to clear his mind, tuning out the questions that were being asked, searching. Searching for a place that was safe.

“What is happening? Why are we not receiving images?” Gairven’s voice was agitated. 

Daniel let the sounds flow over him, around him, through him.

“I . .. I don’t know,” Trovahn answered Gairven’s urgent question as he checked the monitors in front of him. 

“Is the drug still being administered?”

“Yes, the proper doses are being administered,” Anise replied. She looked at Daniel, then back at Gairven. “I think he might be trying to attain a meditative state again.”

“But how? The drug should keep him from being able to resist.”

“I don’t know,” Anise replied.

Daniel no longer heard the words as he continued to pull into himself. The voices muted and blended into the quiet hum that now surrounded him. 

“We must regain control,” Gairven said, his agitation increasing. “Attach the stimulators.”

“No!” Anise grabbed Trovahn’s arm before he could place the disks on Daniel’s skin. 

“We are too close to stop now, Anise,” Gairven stated. “Do not interfere. Either help, or I will have you confined.” Two guards stepped further into the room. 

“We do not know if they will work properly this time,” she tried to reason. 

“I believe it is worth the risk.” Gairven nodded to Trovahn who pulled his arm from Anise’s now lax grip. He attached the disks to Daniel as before and stepped back. 

“Begin,” Gairven ordered. 

Daniel’s body reacted to the stimulators, jerking in its restraints before becoming still once again. 

“It has had no effect,” Gairven observed. “Increase the intensity one level.”

The pain being inflicted didn’t register in his consciousness, so close was he to the sanctuary he sought. The second shock, however, threatened to pull him back, but Daniel pushed forward with renewed effort. The humming grew, obscuring the voices and the beeping of the machines.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“You’re saying that a bunch of your scientists were missing and you didn’t even notice?”

Jack was trying hard—oh, so hard—not to reach across the table and strangle Norvel, the Tok’ra High Council Representative. But he was the base commander—he was supposed to keep his cool and discuss things calmly. Be a good example and all that. Of course, the fact that the IOA representatives who had come for the previously scheduled meeting were also seated around the table, along with Hammond and a couple of other Pentagon people, including Major Davis, had some influence on his behavior—but not much. He was glad Carter and Teal’c were there also, because he knew they felt the same way he did.

“Their absence was covered for awhile by some of their subordinates, all of whom have been put under guard. Two of them were uncomfortable with the deception and came forward, giving us all of the information they had,” Novel explained.

“Uncomfortable? Uncomfortable?” Jack’s voice rose as he repeated the word. “Kidnapping an important member of the SGC—an ally—made them uncomfortable?”

Hammond clearing his throat diverted Jack’s attention to him and they locked gazes. Message received. 

“Why did they take Daniel?” Jack asked in a calmer voice, returning his attention to Norvel.

“After reading of the events with the replicators, several of the scientists believed it might be possible to access the Ancient knowledge in Doctor Jackson’s mind.”

The room remained silent, but concerned looks passed between many of those at the table. 

“Just how are they planning to gain access to that knowledge? Daniel says he doesn’t remember any of it,” Sam asked.

Of course, Jack had wondered about this himself. Replicator Carter had gained access, and, by Daniel’s own account, he had reciprocated by gaining access to _her_ mind with the help of the Ancient knowledge she had tapped into. Daniel had never said that his memories had been erased a second time, and had come back to them with all of his other memories intact. 

Once Area 51 had gotten wind of it, they had ‘requested’ time with Daniel to find out what he remembered. There was no way Jack was going to let them—or anyone else—mess with Daniel’s mind. He had refused, and, backed by the President, Area 51 had backed down. It shouldn’t surprise him that others, including the Tok’ra, would want a chance at tapping into the Ancient knowledge, if there was any there to tap into. A little voice was telling him they probably weren’t the only ones who’d like a chance to dig around in Daniel’s head and he mentally kicked himself for allowing Daniel to go offworld.

“If simply questioning him proved to be unproductive, they were prepared to use the memory device on him,” Norvel answered.

That didn’t sound too bad, Jack thought, not that Daniel would go for it. But Jack had a feeling this little renegade group wouldn’t have gone to these lengths if they hadn’t been prepared to go even further.

“And if that didn’t work?” Jack asked, not really sure he wanted to know.

Norvel glanced at the faces gathered around the table before taking a deep breath. “They have developed two other procedures. One involves the placement of electrical stimulators, and the other involves the use of a new drug they have developed.”

Jack’s rage quickly rose to the boiling point. He wanted to open a wormhole and toss the Tok’ra into it. He wanted to take a zat and fire it once, twice, three times, at those responsible. He wanted to lock the Tok’ra in a room with Teal’c. But none of that would do Daniel any good. And right now, they needed to focus on finding their friend. 

“Do you have any information on where they might be holding Daniel Jackson?” Teal’c asked, the tightness of his jaw telling Jack how much the big guy would like a chance to be alone in a room with the Tok’ra.

“Yes, one of those in collusion with the scientists revealed the coordinates to us. I can give them to your technician.”

Jack sprang from his chair, placed his palms on the table, and leaned closer to Norvel. “Why didn’t you say so when you came through the gate? We’re wasting time with chit-chat while Daniel’s out there being subjected to who knows what!”

Norvel looked remorseful as he replied. “Because we wanted to request that a contingent of Tok’ra be allowed to accompany you. We wish to take those responsible into custody.”

Oh, it was all clear now. The High Council wanted to make sure the Tau’ri didn’t kill the rebellious scientists. And Jack figured that wasn’t all.

“You want to get your hands on whatever they’re able to get from Daniel, don’t you? Your first priority is the Ancient knowledge, isn’t it?”

“General O’Neill, this group has acted without the knowledge or sanction of the High Council. We would never condone what they have done. However, if they have managed to access that knowledge, we feel that information should be preserved.”

“And what about Daniel? Just another casualty of our ‘alliance’? Well, forget it. The SGC can handle the situation without your help.”

“General O’Neill,” the IOA Representative, Russell Chapman, interrupted. “If they have managed to obtain Ancient knowledge, it should be retrieved.”

“My first priority is Daniel. Everything else is secondary,” Jack stated. He turned to Major McKenna. “Major, have SG-7 geared up and ready to go in fifteen.”

“Yes, sir,” McKenna replied eagerly, grateful for the chance to help get Doctor Jackson back.

“O’Neill, I request permission to accompany SG-7,” Teal’c stated.

“I’d like to go, too, sir,” Sam added.

“Oh, you both will, except you’ll be going with me,” Jack replied.

“General O’Neill,” Chapman interjected, “the IOA would prefer you remain at the SGC and let—“

“I don’t give a damn what you prefer; I’m going to accompany SG-1 on the Search and Rescue.” This guy was almost as annoying as Woolsey, and Jack was glad the other IOA member wasn’t present or he’d have his voice to contend with, too, he was sure. “General Hammond can take over for me until I get back.” He pinned Norvel with a look that brooked no argument. “We need those coordinates _now_.”

“General, we must insist you allow some of our people to accompany you.” Norvel wasn’t ready to back down just yet. 

“Yes, in the interest of our alliance, we insist you allow the Tok’ra to accompany you,” Chapman said, evidently abandoning any attempt to get Jack to stay at the SGC in favor of placating the Tok’ra. 

_In the interest of our alliance—ha!_ Jack didn’t think their alliance was worth the paper it was written on at this point. He certainly wouldn’t trust them again. Well, actually, he had never trusted them, so things really hadn’t changed much. 

“Fine, they can tag along, but I am going to make this clear one more time—our first priority is getting Daniel back, understood?” His gaze went from Norvel to Chapman, who both nodded their agreement. “General Hammond, requesting permission to temporarily transfer command of the SGC to you, sir.”

“Granted. I’ll be more than happy to oversee the SGC while you’re gone. Bring Doctor Jackson home.”

“Thank you, sir. Norvel, give the coordinates to our gate technician and have your people meet us in the gateroom.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“He is still not responding to the stimulus,” Trovahn stated.

“Increase the intensity two more levels,” Gairven ordered.

“Gairven, stop,” Anise pleaded. “You will kill him!”

“We will not kill him,” Gairven replied. “However, we must find a level that will pull him out of the meditative state he is in and make him respond to the questions. You heard what was said—the memories are there. We are so close.”

“I want that knowledge as much as you do, but the price is too high,” Anise countered.

“You knew this was a possibility. Is the life of one human worth more than the knowledge of the Ancients?”

“Yes.” Her response was stern and challenging.

“I do not agree, and neither does the rest of the group. Now, step aside; we must continue.” Gairven moved around to face Daniel again. “Everyone clear? Trovahn, proceed.”

~ ~ ~

The body in the chair jerked sharply in its bindings but the consciousness inside it only felt the pitch of the hum surrounding it raise, waiver, and gradually settle back into its previous tone and frequency. A sharp flash of bright white light accompanied the disruption, but it too gradually faded from white to yellow to orange, shifting through the spectrum before settling into the soft blues that swirled within the sanctuary. 

~ ~ ~

Anise watched as Daniel’s body jerked sharply within the restraints before going limp. Not a sound escaped from the man in the chair, and for a moment she thought he was dead. A quick survey of the monitors showed his heart rate and breathing had spiked, but were already settling back to previous levels. He was still alive.

“That should have some effect,” Gairven said. “Doctor Jackson, can you hear me? What did the replicator find within your memories?”

There was no response from Daniel and the view screen still showed no images.

“How can this be?” Stress was apparent in Gairven’s voice.

“I do not know,” Trovahn replied. “The stimulus was at level five—it should have had some affect.”

“Raise it to level seven and try again.”

Without a word, Anise rushed forward and grabbed the device strapped to Daniel’s arm, scrabbling to unfasten it. 

“Stop her!” Gairven shouted just as Trovahn reached her, pulling her hands away from the device.

“Guards, take her out of here and confine her!”

“You’ve gone too far, Gairven—you’re going to kill him! Trovahn, Paresh, this is wrong—we do not have the right to take his life. He and the Tau’ri have done much to help us. They are our allies. The knowledge in Doctor Jackson’s conscious mind is more valuable than anything you might obtain from the Ancient knowledge; we cannot risk losing that. We can find another way! We can—“

The rest of her words were lost to those in the room as the guards physically pulled her through the doorway and down the hall.

Gairven focused an intense look on Trovahn. “Trovahn, level seven.”

With a grim look on his face, Trovahn nodded.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The giant ring began to turn, locking on first one chevron, then another. The Tok'ra guarding it immediately took defensive stances around the base of the platform, holding tightly to their weapons. The wormhole flared to life and settled. A couple of seconds later, a silver sphere came flying through it, landing on the gate platform.

“Get—“

The warning was cut off in mid-shout as the sphere flashed a blinding light accompanied by a high pitched whine. After several more seconds, figures began to emerge through the rippling wormhole. When it shut down, eleven people—seven Tau’ri and four Tok’ra—stood with weapons raised. Spread around the base of the platform were three unconscious Tok’ra. 

Jack silently signaled for SG-7 to fan out and check the perimeter. The Tok’ra took care of securing the unconscious men and moving them away from the gate. After a quick but thorough search, it was determined that no one else was in the vicinity. 

The gate sat in a clearing surrounded by rocky hills with a few scattered trees here and there. A sandy path led away from the gate, heading off between large outcroppings of jagged boulders. They had been given a gate address, but no information on the lay of the land—only that the secret base was built into the side of one of the rocky hills about half an hour from the gate. 

Leaving Carson and Matthews to guard the gate, Jack signaled for the rest of the group to double-time it and headed off down the path. Jack’s gaze shifted from one side of the trail to the other, searching the rocks for hidden threats. He saw Teal’c do the same as he jogged a few paces in front of him. He knew their chances of being ambushed were slim—this was a very small group of Tok’ra they were dealing with. Norvel had said there were about fifteen scientists and assistants, but even he was unsure of the exact number. Jack still couldn’t believe the High Council had been unaware of this covert operation. Fifteen people had set up a secret base on another planet and no one had noticed? And on top of that, they had used intel from their allies to plan and execute the kidnapping of an important member of the SGC. Daniel. They’d taken him because of his ascended memories and were doing who knows what to him right now. 

_Damn it!_ Jack mentally shook himself. He had been happy to let his anger take charge for awhile because it had kept him from thinking about what might be happening to his friend. 

They had been jogging for fifteen minutes when Teal’c’s voice brought him out of his contemplations. “O’Neill.” Teal’c had stopped at the crest of a small rise and was staring down the path. 

Jack sidled up next to him and followed his line of sight. The path dropped more sharply here, descending to the base of a tall, rocky hill that curved away, becoming lost behind some boulders The trees were slightly thicker here, shading the path.

Jack signaled a halt, deciding they were probably getting close to their goal. The rocky hill on their left rose and became almost a sheer cliff, so he sent Carter, Teal’c, McKenna, and Griffen off through the trees on their right. The rest of them stayed put, giving Sam’s group time to circle around and scout for the entrance from the other side.

“Sir, we’ve found the entrance,” Carter’s hushed voice carried through Jack’s radio. “There’s only one guard watching from some nearby rocks.”

“Can you take him out without raising the alarm?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Do it.”

“Yes, sir.”

The faint sound of a zat firing reached Jack’s group, followed by the crackling of his radio. “All clear, sir.” He could always count on Carter.

“Acknowledged,” Jack replied. To the rest of his group, he said, “Let’s move out.”

Only one guard. This was a small operation, which meant most of their manpower was focused on one thing—getting the Ancient knowledge. Once again, Jack found himself trying not to dwell on what might be happening to Daniel and instead, focus on getting him out. But he couldn’t help it. This was the same fear he’d felt when Area 51 had tried to get their hands on Daniel. Fear that they would do irreparable damage to his friend’s mind in the process, that they might even lose Daniel—if not physically, then mentally. He didn’t care what arguments they presented, there was no knowledge they could gain that would be worth a person’s life—worth Daniel’s life. 

Daniel didn’t deserve that. The man had already given his life—more than once—to save humanity; he shouldn’t be asked to give more. Fortunately, the President had agreed with him. It was one reason—the main one, actually—that Jack had decided to support Daniel’s request to go to Atlantis. Daniel had worked so long and hard studying the Ancients; he deserved to have the opportunity to explore their city. And it would get him away from anyone (like the Trust) who decided a President’s order wasn’t enough to keep them from their goal. Jack hadn’t figured on the Tok’ra going after Daniel, too. He wondered if Atlantis was far enough away to keep him safe from this sort of thing. Who was he kidding? This was Daniel he was talking about; he could find trouble crossing the street. 

The group reached the bottom of the incline and followed the path as it curved around a large boulder. A few feet away, Sam and Teal’c’s group was waiting for them. As Jack reached them, he could see the entrance to a cave nearly hidden by a thick cluster of trees. 

Silently merging back into one group, Jack led the way inside, Carter at his side. The four Tok’ra followed, McKenna and Griffen behind them, with Teal’c bringing up the rear. 

The crystal walls were familiar, though the size of the passage was smaller than previous Tok’ra tunnels Jack had been in. They were also pretty well deserted. Arriving at a corner, they cautiously peered around it, seeing a Tok’ra standing at the entrance of a room, apparently guarding something or someone. Trying not to get his hopes up that they’d found Daniel and this would be over quickly, Jack nodded to Carter who zatted the guard. 

Quickly moving down the hall to the door, Jack peered inside, surprised to find Anise and not Daniel in the room. Carter released the force field and Anise rushed forward. 

“General O’Neill, Colonel Carter, I am glad you are here.”

“Anise, what are you doing in here?” Sam asked. 

“I tried to stop them but they wouldn’t listen,” Anise replied, wiping at a tear track on her cheek. 

“What are you talking about?” Jack asked. He’d never seen the woman show emotion like this. He was even more surprised that it was the Tok’ra who was speaking. 

“I told them if they didn’t stop, they would kill him.”

Jack’s anger flared, knowing exactly who she was talking about. “Where is he?”

“I will show you. We must hurry—I fear we may be too late.”

So not what Jack wanted to hear. The room suddenly shook, a loud boom reverberating through the complex. Streams of dirt and pebbles briefly rained down on them. 

“What was that?” Jack asked, looking at Anise who appeared as surprised as the rest of them.

“I don’t know, sir,” Sam answered. “It sounded like—“

“O’Neill! I believe we are under attack,” Teal’c interrupted as he appeared at the room’s entrance. Another boom shook the room again.

“General O’Neill,” Matthew’s voice came over Jack’s radio. “The gate’s being activated and we’ve spotted several gliders.” 

_Crap._ So much for an easy in and out mission. There must be a ship in orbit. Who it belonged to, how they’d found the secret base, and why they were interested in it were questions that would have to wait to be answered. 

Jack turned to the Tok’ra leader. “Kornan, take your men and guard the entrance. Carter, you and Teal’c take McKenna and Griffen and go help Matthews and Carson at the gate. I’m going after Daniel.”

“Yes, sir,” Carter replied. 

“I will show you the way,” Anise offered.

“I will come also, General,” Kornan said. “The rest of my people will guard the entrance.”

“Fine, let’s go,” Jack agreed.

Carter and Teal’c, along with McKenna and Griffen, ran back the way they had come, the three Tok’ra following close behind.

Jack followed Anise through the deserted hallways, more shockwaves rattling the walls sending dirt cascading down. They only encountered two frightened Tok’ra who quickly surrendered. Kornan radioed his men to expect company and sent the two towards the entrance. 

The group resumed their trek and a couple of minutes later, Anise called a halt. “Here is the room,” she said, pointing a few feet ahead. 

“Wait here,” Jack instructed her.

“No, I want to come with you,” Freya spoke this time. “We are partly responsible for Doctor Jackson being here. I’m sorry we could not stop them before they went too far. Anise and I want to help.”

Jack thought it was a little late, but he could see that she was sincere about helping Daniel. “All right, but Kornan and I are going in first.” 

Kornan moved to Jack’s side, handing Anise a zat. She took it and moved behind them.

On Jack’s signal, he and Kornan burst into the room. Jack quickly assessed the situation, noting the six Tok’ra and their positions in the room: four were standing in front of various machines while two were focused on a chair in the center of the room. What was in the chair made Jack’s breath catch in his throat. Daniel was strapped in, with what appeared to be a memory device on one temple and another smaller disk on the other. And he wasn’t moving.

Another boom shook the room, sending the Tok’ra into a frenzy of activity around the machines. Still Daniel didn’t move or even open his eyes. Not a good sign.

“Hold it!” Jack shouted, aiming his P-90 at the Tok’ra now giving him their full attention. “Let him go.”

“General O’Neill,” Matthews’ voice over the radio made several of the Tok’ra jump. “We’ve got Jaffa coming through the gate.”

_Of course we do._ “Hold ‘em, Matthews. Help’s on the way.”

“Yes, sir.”

Jack clicked his radio again. “Hear that, Carter?”

“Yes, sir, we’re almost there.”

“Good. We’ll join you ASAP.”

Previously frightened faces now registered full-fledged panic. One of the Tok’ra shouted, “We must save the data—help us!”

“No time,” Jack snapped. “Now, let Daniel go.”

“It does not matter, he is gone.” 

“What?” Jack moved quickly to Daniel’s side and felt for a pulse, keeping his P-90 aimed at the Tok’ra who had spoken. Anise entered the room, zat raised and trained on the Tok’ra near the machines. She looked at Jack expectantly as he searched for a pulse. A slow, faint, but steady beat passed across his fingertips. “He’s still alive.” Jack exchanged a relieved look with Anise.

“He no longer responds to stimulus—his mind is lost,” the Tok’ra stated. “Help us remove our equipment; we must save the data.”

“Gairven, what have you done?” Kornan asked.

“Only what the High Council was afraid to do--attempt to gain access to the Ancient knowledge.” 

Jack grabbed Gairven’s tunic and yanked him towards the door. “Get out if you wanna save your ass. Go on,” he motioned with his gun to the other scientists in the room. 

Kornan began moving towards Gairven just as another blast impacted the base, bigger than those previous, and the remaining scientists quickly headed for the door, abandoning their equipment.

Gairven was the only one to resist. “We cannot leave—“ He was cut off as Kornan shoved him through the doorway. 

“General O’Neill, Anise, are you coming?” Kornan asked.

“Not without Daniel. Go on, we’ll catch up.” 

Anise gave Jack a small smile, grateful she was allowed to stay, and moved to Daniel’s side, fingers reaching to release the restraints. 

“Stand back,” Jack warned as he pulled out his zat and aimed it at the abandoned equipment. 

“Wait!” Anise interrupted, quickly removing the memory device, the second disk and a third disk attached to Daniel’s chest. She nodded to Jack and turned back to Daniel, working on the remaining restraints. Jack was glad she was there now; Daniel could have still been linked to the equipment.

Jack fired repeatedly, making sure each machine had been hit. Bolts of blue energy danced around the machines, sparks flying and smoke curling from them. Jack had no idea what information they might have obtained from Daniel, but he had no intention of leaving anything for the goa’uld or anyone else to find. He briefly wondered who the Jaffa at the gate served. Which goa’uld they were dealing with?

Anise was gently talking to Daniel, her hand continuously smoothing his hair back from his face. Moving next to her, Jack could see Daniel’s eyes were still mostly closed but a small sliver of blue was still visible. 

“Daniel, wake up. It’s me,” Jack cajoled.

No response, no movement.

“C’mon, buddy, work with me. We’ve gotta go.” Jack patted his cheek with no response, then took hold of Daniel’s shoulders and shook forcefully; still there was no response. “Just gotta be stubborn, don’t ya?” 

Jack swiveled his P-90 around to the back and handed Anise his zat. He gently pulled Daniel forward, leaned over, and settled his friend’s torso over his shoulder. With a grunt, Jack stood up, holding on to Daniel as he lay draped over Jack’s shoulder, arms dangling down his back. 

Bright white light flashed a few feet away and Jack found himself staring at a half dozen Jaffa, their staff weapons already taking aim. Hands full of a limp Daniel, Jack could only stand waiting for their next move. Anise, however, raised both zats, but before she could fire, a staff blast discharged, hitting her in the stomach and knocking her back to land in a heap at the base of the wall. 

Jack braced for the next blast to be aimed at him, but instead, one of the Jaffa approached. 

“You are O’Neill. Our lord will be pleased by this unexpected bonus.”

Jack recognized the emblem on the Jaffa’s forehead—it belonged to his old buddy, Ba’al. 

“Anything to make ole Ba’al happy,” he quipped.

The Jaffa sneered at him as he reached for Jack’s radio, pulling it off of his vest and then dropping it to the floor where he crushed it with his boot. He then moved behind Jack and lifted Daniel’s head for a better look. 

“Excellent. We have what we came for, plus O’Neill. However, the equipment has been ruined,” he added, scanning the still sparking machines. “It will be useless to us.” Turning to his men, he ordered, “Jaffa, kree!”

Jack’s thoughts processed this information while one of the Jaffa relieved Jack of his P-90, then patted him down, also confiscating his knife. The Jaffa had come for Daniel? What did they want with him and how had they known he was here? The situation was going from bad to worse in a hurry. 

The leader faced Jack again. “You may continue to carry Doctor Jackson.”

“Actually, I think Daniel and I would rather just stay here.”

“One of my Jaffa will carry Doctor Jackson if you do not wish to do so.” An evil smile spread across the Jaffa’s face.

“No, no, I’ll do it. Thanks anyway.” He wasn’t about to let the Jaffa get their hands on Daniel. “By the way, where are we going?”

“To be presented to your god.”

_Of course we are._

The Jaffa formed a circle around their prisoners and Jack gave a last glance to Anise lying still on the floor. In another flash of light, they were beamed away. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Jaffa that had come through the gate had taken cover behind it and set up an unending barrage of fire, but not before Teal’c had seen the emblem of Ba’al emblazoned on their foreheads. Sam, Teal’c, and SG-7 had taken up position behind some boulders and returned fire.

“Teal’c, don’t you think it’s odd that only a handful came through the gate?” Sam asked between shots.

“Yes, I expected more to follow.”

“And they haven’t even made a move from behind the gate.”

She exchanged a tense look with her teammate, then ceased firing. Teal’c did the same and Sam signaled SG-7 to stop, also. They waited to see what, if any, move the Jaffa would make. 

Suddenly, a bright light flashed—the unmistakable sign of an Asgard beam. Several of the Jaffa vanished and a second beam flashed, taking another group of Jaffa with it. A third beam left the clearing empty of Jaffa.

“They were a diversion.” Sam’s anger at being 'had' was evident in her face. 

“It would appear so.” Teal’c was equally irritated with the ruse.

Sam quickly clicked her radio. “Sir, the Jaffa were beamed away. Have you found Daniel?”

There was no reply to her call. She looked anxiously to Teal’c, whose forehead was creased with concern. He quickly got to his feet. “We must return to the Tok’ra base immediately.” 

“Let’s go,” Sam agreed, signaling the others to move out.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When the light faded, Jack wasn’t surprised to find they were on a ha’tak. More specifically, in a large cargo hold on a ha’tak. He turned slightly, examining the room which held the usual Jaffa with staff weapons aimed in his direction. What did surprise him was the stargate sitting on a platform at one end of the room. Good to know. If it was operational, it was a possible way off the ship. 

“Move,” the Jaffa in charge barked. 

The escort closed in on Jack, urging him forward. He made sure Daniel was secure across his shoulder and began walking towards the door. Just as he reached the entrance, he heard the familiar sound of the big ring turning. _Definitely good news._

Jack was guided through the halls, passing continuous gilded panels that typified a goa’uld mothership. He hoped wherever they were headed wasn’t far. It’d been awhile since he’d had to carry anyone like this and his knees were protesting the added weight. 

His concern for his friend continued to mount—he hadn’t felt a twitch or heard a peep out of Daniel since he’d found him. What the hell had the Tok’ra done to him? Jack needed to get him to a doctor, but instead they were trapped on Ba’al’s ship and Jack doubted the goa’uld would be inclined to offer medical attention. Unless, of course, he put Daniel in a sarcophagus. Which bought him back to what the Jaffa had said: ‘We have what we came for.’ What did Ba’al want with Daniel and how had he known where to find him?

Maybe he was about to find out. The Jaffa had come to a stop in front of a set of golden double doors and Jack was pretty sure what—who—they would find on the other side. The Jaffa in charge pushed the doors open and Jack was marched into the room and straight to the throne at the opposite end. The throne occupied by a very smug-looking Ba’al. 

A few feet in front of the throne, the Jaffa stopped. One of them started to pull Daniel out of Jack’s grasp and Jack took a step back. “I don’t think so.” 

Two more Jaffa moved quickly to grab Jack by the arms, allowing Daniel to be pulled off of his shoulder and laid on his back on the floor.

Ba’al slowly rose from his throne and began to descend the few steps to the floor. He nonchalantly approached Daniel’s prone form, looking down at the unmoving body laid out before him. He used a booted foot to nudge Daniel and Jack briefly pulled against the arms holding him. He knew he was wasting his time trying to hide his reaction—Ba’al knew them too well.

Ba’al glanced at Jack, noticing his reaction, a malevolent smile playing across his lips. His foot struck Daniel again, with more force, causing the body to move. Still no sign of awareness came from Daniel. Ba’al watched Jack for another reaction, but Jack controlled his anger and forced himself to stand still.

Ba’al left Daniel and moved to stand in front of Jack. “We expected the pleasure of Doctor Jackson’s company, but not that of General O’Neill.”

“Believe me, it wasn’t my idea,” Jack quipped.

“This is indeed fortuitous. I have been informed that all of the Tok’ra equipment was destroyed. Perhaps you can be of assistance, first by telling us what is wrong with Doctor Jackson.”

“He did mention he was a little tired,” Jack offered. Ba’al knew about the Tok’ra’s attempts to gain access to Daniel’s memories, which meant the snake was undoubtedly after the same thing. This was bad.

“Ah, so you suggest he is merely sleeping? Or perhaps he is—what is the Tau’ri expression—‘playing possum’?” Ba’al nodded to his first Prime who walked over to a nearby wall and removed a metal rod from a holder.

_Crap_. That had backfired. Jack was all too familiar with a goa’uld pain stick and the last thing he wanted was for Daniel to have a repeat experience with it—especially not knowing what had already been done to him.

“Now wait a minute. Why don’t you let me try waking him up? He can be pretty grumpy when he wakes up.”

Ba’al’s smile grew. “I’ll take my chances.” He looked at the First Prime. “Dreg’nor, please awaken Doctor Jackson.”

The First Prime stepped up to Daniel’s limp form and reached out with the pain stick. Jack started to dart forward, but the two Jaffa holding him tightened their grips. Dreg’nor touched the stick to Daniel’s arm. Daniel’s body stiffened as shafts of light poured from his mouth, but the only sound was the buzzing of the stick’s energy. Dreg’nor removed the pain stick but Daniel didn’t move or make a sound. The First Prime looked to Ba’al.

“Again,” the goa’uld ordered.

“Stop it!” Jack shouted, no longer trying to hide his feelings. He was ignored while Dreg’nor touched the stick to Daniel’s stomach. Again the body stiffened and light poured from his mouth and around edges of his eyes, but once again Daniel remained unmoving and silent. Dreg’nor removed the stick, confusion evident on his face.

Jack pulled even harder and was pushed to his knees, the Jaffa gripping his arms painfully tight. 

Ba’al’s forehead wrinkled and he moved closer, examining Daniel. “Does he live?”

Dreg’nor bent down and checked for a pulse and then to see if Daniel was breathing. Jack held his breath—afraid to hear the reply. 

“He lives, my lord.”

Relief washed over Jack and he quit pulling against his captors. _He’s alive for now, but something’s seriously wrong if a pain stick doesn’t have any affect._

“How curious,” Ba’al continued, turning towards Jack. “What has happened to him, O’Neill?”

“Not a clue.” Which was the truth.

“Come now, you were with him. You must know how he can be revived.”

“I wouldn’t tell you even if I knew. The Tok’ra did something to him before I got there.”

“Forgive me if I don’t take your word for it.”

“I don’t care if you believe me or not—I can’t tell you what I don’t know.”

“You took great pleasure in taunting me at our last meeting.”

“Hey, it’s what I do.”

Ba’al moved closer until he was standing over Jack who was still on his knees. “Our situations are now reversed and when I finish with you, we shall see what is left of _your_ pride.”

Someday, Jack decided, he was going to have to learn not to bait the bad guys—it usually came back to bite him in the butt. Like now.

Ba’al gave a slight nod to his First Prime who moved from Daniel to Jack, extending the pain stick. The two Jaffa restraining him let go just before the stick made contact with Jack’s shoulder.

Jack knew what was coming and also knew there was nothing he could do to prepare for it. Fire erupted in his shoulder and quickly spread to the rest of his body. He couldn’t hold back voicing his pain as fiery light spilled out of his mouth and eyes. The stick was removed and he collapsed to the floor, panting.

“Now that I have your attention,” Ba’al gloated, “tell me what has been done to Doctor Jackson and what information the Tok’ra were able to obtain from him.”

“I . . . told you . . . don’t know,” Jack continued to pant between words.

“Don’t make this unpleasant. Tell me what I want to know.”

“Go . . . to . . . hell.” So much for not baiting.

Daggers of fire attacked his body once again and another cry escaped as the light spilled out of him. The pain suddenly eased and he lay in a haze, limbs trembling. _Damn, I'm getting too old for this._

“Shall I have Dreg’nor continue or are you ready to answer my questions?”

Jack continued to lie on the floor, eyes tightly shut, breathing hard. He didn’t bother to answer. He was aware of Ba’al moving back to sit on his throne. 

“Dreg’nor, take General O’Neill to a place where he can spend some time considering my questions. Have Doctor Jackson taken to our scientists. Perhaps they will be able to revive him and extract the knowledge we desire.”

“Yes, my lord.” Dreg’nor signaled to several of his men and they moved towards Jack and Daniel. 

“Wait,” Ba’al halted them, moving down from his throne once again. He bent down next to Jack and grabbed his arm, running his fingers from elbow to wrist. “Here.” His fingers stopped on spot on Jack’s forearm. 

Ba’al moved back, allowing the Jaffa to take his place. Another Jaffa flipped Jack onto his stomach and pressed his face into the floor while another Jaffa held Jack’s arm securely. Dreg’nor pulled out his knife and proceeded to make a slit in Jack’s arm.

“Gah!” Jack grunted as he tried unsuccessfully to twist away. 

He was released and rolled to his side, clutching his bleeding arm. His eyes came to rest on Daniel, the First Prime cutting out his locator chip while the other Jaffa stood ready to restrain Daniel if he woke. He didn’t. He didn’t flinch or make a sound as Dreg’nor cut his arm and removed the chip. 

Dreg’nor carried both locators to Ba’al, offering them in his outstretched hand. “They have been removed, my lord.”

Ba’al stood and looked over the bloody chips in the First Prime’s hand. “Very good. Now, set them on the floor.”

Dreg’nor obeyed, placing the locators on the floor at Ba’al’s feet. With a smirking glance at Jack, Ba’al placed his boot on one, pressing until a crack could be heard. He did the same with the second chip. 

“We wouldn’t want any unexpected company, now would we?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Jack gasped, still clutching his arm as he struggled to bring his breathing under control. “I always enjoy having company drop in.”

Ba’al laughed. “Actually, I think some time by yourself would be beneficial.”

Jack really didn’t want to be separated from Daniel. His eyes darted to his friend still motionless on the floor. 

Ba’al saw Jack’s gaze pass to his friend. “Don’t worry, we will keep Doctor Jackson occupied in your absence.” 

As the two Jaffa pulled Jack to his feet, he lunged forward, anger overriding everything else, and was brought up short by the hands like vises on his arms. “If you hurt him, so help me, I’ll kill you myself.” 

Dreg’nor moved quickly, swinging the end of his staff weapon to impact with Jack’s stomach. Jack began to double over, a grunt escaping, but was kept from hitting the floor by the two Jaffa holding his arms. 

“You are in no position to make threats,” Ba’al replied, all trace of a smile gone. “Take him away.”

Jack continued to fight the Jaffa holding him but their grips remained firm as they dragged him from the room. Jack’s last glimpse of Daniel showed Ba’al standing over him, brows pinched in thought. 

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Teal’c’s feet hit the ramp as he exited the wormhole and he shifted to maintain his balance as he carried his burden into the gateroom. Armed SFs kept their weapons trained on the group as more people poured through the gate behind him. Colonel Carter and Major McKenna were already at the base of the ramp speaking to General Hammond and the Tok’ra Council member, Norvel. 

The rebel Tok’ra exited the gate, surrounded by Kornan and his men. A medical team stood ready with a couple of gurneys. Teal’c walked up to one and carefully laid Anise on it, letting the medics move in to check the staff weapon wound in her chest. 

Anise had barely been alive when they had discovered her in the Tok’ra lab. O’Neill and Daniel Jackson were no where to be found. Barely clinging to life, she had been unable to tell them what had happened to the men. 

Teal’c watched as they rushed her from the gateroom, hoping the doctors—and her symbiote--would be able to save her. She might be their only link to finding O’Neill and Daniel Jackson. He turned back to the activity in the gateroom, joining Colonel Carter as she informed General Hammond and Norvel of the events that had transpired. 

The Tok’ra prisoners stood with hands bound in Tok’ra designed metal restraints, looking nervously at the SFs guarding them. 

“Let’s take this to the briefing room,” General Hammond was saying. “Norvel, your prisoners will be taken to holding cells until this can be sorted out.”

“Very well,” the council member agreed.

“Excuse me,” Kornan interrupted, “but I believe Gairven and Trovahn should be present at the briefing. They were in charge of the operation and may be able to give us more information.”

“All right,” Hammond said, “bring them.” Turning to Major McKenna, he directed, “Have your men escort the prisoners to the holding cells.”

“Yes, sir.” Orders were given and the prisoners were led from the room. 

General Hammond and Norvel led the way to the stairs and Teal’c walked beside Colonel Carter as they followed. Major McKenna and Kornan brought up the rear, herding the two Tok’ra scientists in front of them. 

A short time later, everyone was seated around the briefing room table. Gairven and Trovahn, hands still bound, sat between Norvel and Kornan on one side, while Teal’c, Colonel Carter, and Major McKenna sat on the other. 

Hammond had taken his place in his old familiar spot at the head of the table and was addressing Colonel Carter. “Colonel, please tell us what happened.”

“Yes, sir.”

While Colonel Carter began relating the events on the planet, Teal’c looked carefully at each of the Tok’ra seated across from him. Norvel looked upset but was maintaining an air of calmness. Kornan was slightly agitated but holding his anger in check. Trovahn was nervous, fear evident in his face. Teal’c’s gaze stopped on Gairven, assessing the man. His demeanor was in contrast to Trovahn’s; instead of nervous and fearful, he appeared tense and angry. Was it because his work had been interrupted? Because they had been caught? The subject of Teal’c’s scrutiny turned and locked gazes with him, and Teal’c immediately recognized the haughty look of disdain—like that a goa’uld would use with a servant or slave. A couple of seconds ticked by before Gairven averted his gaze. 

Kornan was relating his story. “General O’Neill and Anise were going to release Doctor Jackson from the chair. General O’Neill said they would catch up. That is the last I saw of them.”

“Sir,” Colonel Carter interjected, “The Jaffa at the gate were beamed away. There’s a good chance that’s what happened to General O’Neill and Daniel.”

“In that case, Ba’al has them,” Teal’c stated solemnly. 

“And that would also mean there’s a spy in the Tok’ra ranks,” Sam added.

Norvel turned to Gairven and Trovahn. “What do you know of this?”

Trovahn’s voice wavered as he spoke. “Nothing, I swear. We simply wanted to gain access to the Ancient knowledge. I do not know of anyone who would associate with Ba’al or any other goa’uld.”

Gairven spoke with firmness. “We were only working to aid the Tok’ra in defeating the remaining goa’uld. We would not be working for one of them.”

Norvel was having trouble containing his anger. “General Hammond, we would like to take the prisoners back to our base for questioning.”

“Councilor, two of our people are missing and the responsibility for that rests squarely on the shoulders of the Tok’ra. You may take the prisoners wherever you want _after_ we have finished questioning them. They may know where Ba’al has taken our people.”

“General, I insist on being present when they are questioned.”

“I agree.” Russell Chapman’s voice carried from the doorway. He strode into the room and stood at the opposite end of the table from General Hammond. “Why was I not informed of this meeting?”

“You were occupied elsewhere and we couldn’t postpone it. Two of our people are missing and I’m afraid time is of the essence. I will consent to Councilor Norvel being present at the questioning.”

“General Hammond,” Teal’c interrupted, “I request permission to escort the prisoners to the brig and participate in their questioning.” His gaze settled on Gairven once again, who continued to return the look with restrained anger.

“Very well. Make sure they are questioned separately.” 

Teal’c rose and walked around the table, stopping behind Gairven. He placed a hand on the Tok’ra’s shoulder. “You will come with me.”

Gairven reacted by jumping up and pulling away from Teal’c’s hand. “Do not touch me!”

Teal’c let his hand drop as SFs moved in with weapons raised. Gairven began walking towards the door and Teal’c fell in beside him. 

Once in the hall, Teal’c spoke to the scientist in a low voice. “If you were a goa’uld and not a Tok’ra, I would break your neck for what you did to Daniel Jackson.”

Gairven whirled and faced Teal’c, all control gone. “Do not speak to me in that manner, Shol’va.”

A small smile played at the corner of Teal’c’s lips. “Only a goa’uld would call me Shol’va. You are no Tok’ra.”

Gairven lunged at him, but Teal’c was quicker, grabbing his bound hands with one hand and placing his other hand around the man’s throat, pushing him up against the wall. SFs once again trained their weapons on the Tok’ra. 

Those in the briefing room filed out into the hall looking for the source of the commotion.

“What’s going on, Teal’c?” General Hammond asked.

“Here is your spy, Councilor Norvel. This man is a goa’uld.”

“What? But he is one of our leading scientists!”

Teal’c loosened his hold on Gairven’s throat but kept him securely against the wall. “I only worked with the Tok’ra so that I could gain access to the Ancient knowledge in Doctor Jackson’s mind.” He looked from Teal’c to Colonel Carter to General Hammond, the haughtiness returning to his features. “And now, Ba’al will no doubt have tapped into those memories himself. He will have taken our equipment and the data we recorded from Doctor Jackson.”

“I wouldn’t count on that,” Carter said. “We found Anise on the floor of the lab. All of the equipment had been destroyed.”

Shock flashed across Gairven’s face and for the first time he looked unsure of himself. “You lie.”

“We do not. O’Neill would not allow that information to fall into enemy hands. He would most certainly have destroyed the equipment.”

Gairven was silent, processing the information. “Take him away,” General Hammond ordered. Teal’c released his hold and the SFs herded the two scientists towards the elevators. 

“How did you know?” Colonel Carter asked Teal’c. 

“During the briefing he was not fearful of what would happen to him, only angry. And he did not like having a Jaffa in a position over him. In the hall he called me ‘Shol’va’; a Tok’ra would not do such a thing.”

“Good work,” General Hammond added. “Why don’t you go see if you can get him to tell you where Ba’al would take General O’Neill and Doctor Jackson?”

“It will be my pleasure, General Hammond.” Teal’c gave a bow before striding towards the elevators, anticipating the coming interrogation.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jack glanced at his watch again—surprised he’d been allowed to keep it since they’d taken pretty much everything else—and noted that a little over four hours had passed. He had paced, sat, and paced some more, worrying over what the snaky bastard was doing to Daniel. Of course, that was probably the point; to let him sit and worry and know exactly how much time he’d been separated from his teammate.

Images of what Jack had gone through the last time he was in Ba’al’s company kept worming their way into his thoughts. Knives, acid, dying, the sarcophagus. The last time he had had Daniel for company. This time he was alone and so was Daniel. He couldn’t go to his friend and offer support. He didn’t know if Daniel would even hear him if he did. Gairven’s words kept eating at him: _His mind is gone_. Was it? What would be the consequences of not getting Daniel medical attention? Because that didn’t look like it was going to happen anytime soon. 

The clanging of Jaffa boots rang down the hall. Jack looked up as four Jaffa appeared at the door to his cell. The force field covering the entrance disappeared and the First Prime addressed him. “You will come with us.”

A sarcastic remark died on Jack’s lips as he remembered his earlier vow to stop baiting the bad guys. Silently, he left the cell, ensconced within the tight enclosure of his escort.

Several twists and turns later, they stopped at a door where Dreg’nor punched in a code on the door’s keypad. Entering, Jack saw that he was in a large room with electronic equipment along one wall. The back of the large room was dark and Jack couldn’t tell how large it was or what else was in there. Two people were checking readings on the machines while another stood next to a table in the center of the room. Standing next to him was Ba’al, and both men were focused on the person lying on the table—Daniel. 

Jack’s gaze quickly assessed his friend; his wrists and ankles were secured to the table by leather straps, as was his neck. Outwardly, Jack couldn’t see any injuries, but Daniel’s eyes were still closed and Jack assumed he still hadn’t work up.

“Ah, O’Neill, you are just in time,” Ba’al’s voice dripped with sarcasm. 

Jack resisted the urge to taunt and played along. “For what?”

“Doctor Jackson has had quite a long nap. He even slept through the tests our scientists performed and their attempts to rouse him. I believe it is time to use stronger methods to wake him.”

“Haven’t you heard the expression, ‘Let sleeping dogs lie’?”

“Again, I think I will take my chances.” Turning to the scientist next to him, Ba’al ordered, “Begin.”

The scientist dipped his head to the goa’uld and motioned to one of the other scientists. The second man picked up something from a table and brought it over to where Daniel lay. He bent and set it on Daniel’s head, making some kind of adjustments, while Jack strained to see what it was. The scientist stepped back and Jack saw that it consisted of two metal bands, each about two inches wide, one stretching from ear to ear across Daniel’s forehead and the other across the top of his head, connecting just above the ears where it also made contact with the skin. 

Jack realized his hands were clenched into fists, palms sweating as he waited to see what they were going to do to Daniel. He stole a look at Ba’al, who returned his gaze with that annoying lopsided smirk. 

At a signal from the first scientist, the second touched a control panel and then they all turned their focus to Daniel. Jack watched as a blue light came on in the center of the headpiece and a faint humming filled the air.

Ba’al stood watching intently with the first scientist while the others alternated checking the readouts and looking back at Daniel. 

After a few seconds, Ba’al turned to the man next to him. “Well?”

“It is set at a low level. I am sure we will get a response when it is increased.” He signaled one of the other scientists who nodded and adjusted a dial. 

Jack had no idea what the contraption was doing to his friend, but he watched as the light shifted from blue to green. Again, the scientists busied themselves checking their equipment while the first man nervously looked from Daniel to Ba’al and back. 

Whatever it was, Jack decided it must not be working as planned. He had no clue if that was a good thing or a bad thing for Daniel. More seconds passed and Jack caught himself holding his breath. 

“I grow impatient, Rezant,” Ba’al stated, scowling at the scientist.

“Rest assured, my lord, we will be successful.” Rezant walked over to the controls and made an adjustment. Again Jack observed the light on the headpiece change color, this time from green to yellow and on to orange. He didn’t need Carter to explain things to know this was not good. He couldn’t just stand here and watch. He took a step forward, but was quickly grabbed by the arms and held in place. 

“You won’t get anything out of him if you kill him.” His words were wrapped in a threat and aimed at the goa’uld. 

“We have no intention of killing him—yet.” Ba’al gave him another smug smile before returning his attention to Daniel. 

Alarms began to sound, sending the scientists into a frenzy of activity around their equipment. At the same moment Daniel began to seize, his body pulling against its restraints, and Jack was sure he was going to choke on the strap at his neck. Jack pulled harder against the Jaffa holding him, but suddenly changed tactics, picking up his foot and kicking backwards into the groin of the Jaffa on his right. The guard groaned, bending in pain, at the same time loosening his grip on Jack’s arm. It was enough to allow Jack to pull his right arm free and he swung it around to smash into the face of the Jaffa on his left, ramming his nose and releasing a flow of blood. 

Taking advantage of the Jaffa’s surprise and pain, Jack freed his other arm and used both hands to hit the big man again. The Jaffa dropped to his knees and Jack lurched for his fallen staff weapon, swinging it up to aim at Ba’al. The first Jaffa, obviously still in pain, weakly lifted his staff weapon to aim at Jack.

“Back off or I’ll shoot your ‘god’.”

“O’Neill—“

“Shut up and let Daniel go.” 

“Do you really think you will be able to leave here with your friend in his current condition?” Ba’al didn’t seem fazed by the staff weapon aimed in his direction.

The alarms continued to sound and Jack looked at his friend, whose body had finally stilled. 

“What’s wrong with him?” Jack directed his question to Rezant who was nervously looking from Daniel to the beeping equipment.

“His heart has stopped, we must—“

Ba’al cut off the scientist’s words. “No.”

Rezant looked from Daniel to Ba’al, obviously surprised by the order. “My lord?”

“Put down your weapon, O’Neill, if you want to save him.”

Alarms continued to toll their harsh death knell. Ba’al would let Daniel die unless Jack surrendered. If he had gone to all this trouble to get Daniel, would he really let him die? Jack couldn’t let that happen, couldn’t take the chance, even though he knew Ba’al might just put Daniel in the sarcophagus. Could he risk it?

“All right! Here.” Jack dropped the staff weapon and raised his hands. “Now help him!”

Ba’al nodded to Rezant who quickly grabbed a small device from a tray and reached inside Daniel’s t-shirt, placing it against his chest. The other two scientists continued to turn dials and within seconds the alarms went silent.

Jack stepped closer to Daniel, needing to see for himself that his teammate was breathing. The rise and fall of his chest confirmed that Daniel was still alive.

“Since Doctor Jackson is being uncooperative, it is up to you, O’Neill, to give us the information that we seek.” 

“I already told you, I don’t—“

Jack’s protest was cut off by a blow to his back from a staff weapon, which sent him sprawling on the floor. 

“Perhaps you need some persuasion,” Ba’al stated.

A hand grabbed Jack’s collar and hauled him to his feet. A shove pushed him forward towards the far side of the room. Lights sprang on illuminating a small raised platform that held a high-backed, gilded chair. Ba’al stepped up on the platform and seated himself. 

Jack was guided to a tarp-covered object sitting about twenty feet across from the throne. One of the Jaffa pulled the cover off, revealing a large metal frame. For an instant, the image of a spider web flashed through his mind and his chest tightened in near panic. Taking a deep breath, he shook off the feeling of dread it brought. This wasn’t it—wasn’t the same device where he’d been tortured and killed over and over. Oh, he was still in deep trouble—from each corner hung short chains with manacles dangling from the ends. 

The two Jaffa each grabbed one of Jack’s arms, bringing it up where they could fasten a manacle around it. His boots and socks were yanked off and a manacle was secured around each ankle. One of the Jaffa leaned in, inches from his face, and Jack saw it was the man he had kicked in the groin. Not good. With a sneer, the Jaffa grasped Jack’s t-shirt and pulled, ripping it off of him. He continued to look Jack in the eye, pure hatred radiating from him. “You will pay for that,” he spat just before he pounded a beefy fist into Jack’s abdomen. 

Jack would have bent double if he hadn’t been stretched and held by the manacles. He gasped and tried to pull in a breath, pain burning in his stomach, radiating up to his chest and through his limbs. 

“Sur’ac is eager to begin,” Ba’al said pleasantly. 

Jack didn’t even try to respond, dragging in sharp breaths that continued to shoot spikes of pain throughout his body. Bile rose in his throat and he fought to keep it down.

“Now, I am sure you remember how this is done,” Ba’al continued. “I will ask a question and you will give me an answer.” 

“You’re . . . wasting . . . your . . . time,” Jack panted. “I . . . told you . . . I don’t . . . know anything.”

“Perhaps.” Ba’al got up and stepped down from the throne, pacing a couple of times before turning to Jack again. “I want to know what the Tok’ra were able to learn from Doctor Jackson’s memories. I want to know if there is another ancient weapon like the one on Dakara hidden somewhere.”

Jack had figured that’s what Ba’al was after—another weapon he could get his hands on and use for his own purpose. One that wasn’t under the control of the Jaffa—one that Ba’al’s severely depleted forces could take without much of a fight. Jack didn’t have a clue if the Tok’ra had found out anything from Daniel, so Ba’al was wasting his time. Jack thought the only good thing about the situation was that Ba’al had shifted his attention from Daniel to him; he was glad they were leaving his friend alone, at least temporarily. 

“Don’t know. Wouldn’t tell you if I did.” Jack met Ba’al’s gaze defiantly. 

Fire raced from Jack’s back to every part of his body, bright light pouring from his mouth as he tried to stifle a scream. The pain stick was evidently pulled away, because the pain began to subside, except for a dull throbbing that continued in the area of his stomach where Sur’ac had punched him. 

“Let us try again.” Ba’al’s voice had hardened, no longer carrying the false pleasantness it had earlier. “What did the Tok’ra learn from Doctor Jackson?”

Jack’s eyes were tightly shut, but he opened them to glare at Ba’al. “They learned just how much Daniel hates you pompous snakes. That and he gave them a couple of really good recipes.” 

More fire, more pain, burning all the way out to his fingertips which curled into his palms as his body shook. This time the pain lasted longer, Sur’ac apparently making good on his vow to make Jack pay for kicking him. When it finally ended, Jack’s head hung down, chin touching chest, sweat dripping, as he tried to drag in ragged breaths. The pain in his stomach throbbed again, burning with more intensity, and he knew that was not a good thing, that there was a good chance he had some serious damage there. 

“My lord,” Rezant approached Ba’al and bowed. 

“What is so important that you interrupt my interrogation?”

“Forgive me, my lord, but Doctor Jackson’s brain waves are changing. I believe he may revive soon.”

Jack never thought he’d be unhappy to hear Daniel was recovering, but he was now. If he woke up, Jack knew Ba’al would go after his friend mercilessly to get the information he wanted. 

“That is good news. Perhaps we will be able to question him after all.” Ba’al, on the other hand, was extremely pleased with the news.

A Jaffa entered the room, walking up to Ba’al’s throne and bowing on one knee. “My lord, we approach Saphon.” 

“More good news.” Ba’al’s voice reflected his pleasure. “I think we will continue this later. Dreg’nor, take General O’Neill and Doctor Jackson to their room. Have them transported to Saphon on my order.”

“Yes, my lord,” Dreg’nor replied, bowing. 

Dreg’nor and Sur’ac moved to either side of Jack, preparing to release him from the manacles. Sur’ac leaned into Jack’s face, his hot, foul breath making Jack gag. “I have not finished with you, Tau’ri. We will continue this later.” Once again, the big man’s fist buried itself in Jack’s midsection. Pain exploded in his stomach and he couldn’t hold back the bile, vomit spraying across the floor and the Jaffa’s boots. 

Sur’ac pulled his arm back for another blow, but was stopped by Dreg’nor. “Enough. Lord Ba’al does not wish them permanently damaged. He will decide what is to be done with them.”

Glaring at Jack, Sur’ac refrained from landing another blow. The pain in Jack’s stomach burned more fiercely and he found his vision beginning to gray. At least he’d been granted a temporary respite.

Both of Jack’s arms were released from the manacles and he collapsed to the floor, curling into a ball as he fought the pain in his gut. In his haze of pain, he held on to one thing: Daniel. Rezant said Daniel would wake up and Ba’al had said to put them in ‘their’ room. Maybe if he stayed conscious he would get to talk to his friend. That plan disappeared as strong hands pulled him up off the floor and the gray haze turned to black. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Time had no meaning deep within the sanctuary. Whatever was happening to his body didn’t register here. Sounds like chimes gently stirred by a breeze or a brook quietly spilling over smooth stones filled the sanctuary, occasionally wavering but always returning to their original tones. Azure, indigo, and turquoise blended in the swirling wisps of clouds around him. 

Drifting within the swirling blues, Daniel became aware of a pinpoint of silver shining steadily through the cerulean cloud around him. He was drawn to it and moved closer until it became the size of an orange, its tendrils of silver light illuminating a corner of the sanctuary as they reached out to him. It was familiar, like a memory that drifted just out of the mind’s grasp. He reached out, and as he touched its surface, an image flashed in his consciousness. He pulled away, a tingling sensation filling him, and processed what he’d seen. He remembered. He had had this information before, when the universe had been at his fingertips. And it was intoxicating—he had to have more. He knew it would overwhelm him if he tried to accept it all at once. But maybe—just maybe—he could take a little at a time. 

Daniel continued to absorb knowledge from the silver sphere, taking small amounts at a time. Gradually, he became aware of a sound penetrating the sanctuary, rippling the sonorous chiming. He tried to push it away, shut it out, but it was familiar. It was a voice, and the voice was in pain. He wanted to ignore it, to protect himself, not wanting anything to pull him away from the safety of his sanctuary. But the voice continued to call to him and he knew he had to help, had to leave his cocoon of safety. 

Jack needed him. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Heat. Something was spreading warmth around the pain in his gut. Where was he? What were they doing to him? Where was Daniel? A bright white light shone behind his closed eyelids and he suddenly knew where he was. The sarcophagus. He wanted to kick and scream but he had no strength; he couldn’t even open his eyes. God! He didn’t want to go through this again. Gradually the pain in his stomach began to fade and he felt himself drifting off. That was fine with him; he just didn’t want to wake up in this box again. _Daniel?_

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sam looked across at Teal’c who was sitting against the bulkhead of the Al’Kesh with his eyes closed in meditation. _Preparing himself_. 

She had been surprised at how quickly he’d been able to obtain the information they needed from Gairven. She didn’t think she wanted to know what kind of persuasion Teal’c had used to gain Gairven’s ‘cooperation’. Within half an hour of entering the Tok’ra scientist’s cell, they had learned that Ba’al was building a new base and also the star system where it was located. Gairven hadn’t been able to give them a specific planet, but Norvel had determined there was a Tok’ra base in a nearby system with a ship available to transport them. Sam, Teal’c, along with SG-3 and SG-7, had gated to the Tok’ra base and now, four hours later, were about to enter the system where they hoped Ba’al was headed. 

There were a dozen habitable planets in this system and Sam was worried about how long it would take them to find Ba’al’s base. She hoped their teammates’ transmitters would help them locate their friends when they did. 

“We are entering the system,” Kornan stated. He had insisted on accompanying them on their mission to retrieve the missing SGC personnel. Sam knew he felt guilty for having left the colonel and Anise in the lab with Daniel.

Sam began scanning the nearest planet as Teal’c rose and took the seat next to her. She found no ships in orbit and there were no large concentrations of life signs or indications of technology. 

“I don’t think this is it,” she announced.

“Then let us continue our search,” Teal’c said.

The ship pulled away and headed to the next world in the system. 

_This is going to take too much time_ , Sam thought. _Time the colonel and Daniel might not have_. Frustrated, she looked across at her teammate. Teal’c looked calm and confident. Teal’c always looked calm and confident. 

“We will find them, Colonel Carter.”

Sam struggled to give him a small smile. “I know.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jack gradually realized he was lying on something hard, except for his head which had something soft underneath it. He carefully pried his eyes open, half expecting to see the inside of the sarcophagus. The ceiling was far above him, so, not in the sarcophagus. He felt something lying against his chest and lifted his head slightly to look down at himself. 

A hand was lying palm down on his stomach and he followed the attached arm to his left to find Daniel face down on the floor next to him. He appeared to still be out of it, but his hand was on Jack’s stomach, so maybe he’d been awake at some point. Jack lifted Daniel’s hand from his stomach and turned on his side, laying the hand on the floor next to its owner.

Rising up on one elbow, Jack reached out and took hold of Daniel’s shoulder, giving it a shake. “Daniel?”

His friend remained quiet and Jack let his gaze drift over his friend, searching for injuries. He didn’t see any, but Daniel had lost his t-shirt somewhere along the way. He glanced back to where his head had been and discovered he’d been using Daniel’s t-shirt as a pillow. Which meant Daniel _had_ been awake at some point because he doubted their Jaffa friends would have cared about their comfort.

“C’mon, Daniel, wakey, wakey.” He shook his friend again and this time received a faint moan. “That’s it, rise and shine.” 

He received another moan accompanied by an indistinguishable word in response. As Jack waited for Daniel to get fully awake, he took inventory of his own injuries and wasn’t surprised to find them pretty much healed. There was only a twinge left of the pain in his stomach. _Good ‘ole sarcophagus_.

A noise from Daniel brought Jack’s attention back to him. He placed a hand on his shoulder again. “Daniel?”

“J’k?” The name came out in a whisper of air and Jack smiled. Daniel recognized him. Maybe his mind was intact after all.

“Yeah, it’s me. You okay?”

“Mmm . . .”

Jack took hold of Daniel’s arm and carefully rolled him onto his back. Daniel’s eyelids fluttered then opened and he squinted at his surroundings. 

“Hey there,” Jack said leaning over him.

“Jack?”

“The one and only.”

“Where?”

“Ba’al’s ship, remember?”

“Ba’al?” Apparently he didn’t.

“Yeah. We came looking for you but Ba’al’s Jaffa showed up at the Tok’ra lab and brought us on board his ship.”

Jack watched Daniel process that information, his forehead creasing in thought. 

“You were hurt.” 

“All better now. How are you feeling?”

“Umm . . . tired. Sore. I’m okay.”

_Sure you are_. “Can you sit up?”

“I think so.”

Jack helped Daniel get upright, keeping a steadying hand on him when he swayed. 

“Do you remember being awake earlier?” Jack asked, pointing to the rolled up t-shirt.

Daniel looked at the t-shirt, down at his own bare chest, and then across at Jack’s. Jack hoped Daniel’s inability to fire on all cylinders was just temporary, that whatever the Tok’ra and Ba’al had done to him hadn’t caused any permanent damage. 

Daniel looked up at Jack again. “You were hurt.”

“Uh, yeah, I think we’ve been over that already. I’m fine now, Daniel.”

“But, your arm.” Daniel’s gaze settled on the cut where Jack’s locator chip had been. It was just a faint, jagged, pink line now, surrounded by dried blood.

Jack reached over and lifted Daniel’s arm so he could see his own cut, which was still red and angry looking. Apparently, Daniel hadn’t had a turn in the sarcophagus, which Jack found odd. Daniel stared at it briefly before turning questioning eyes to Jack. 

“Ba’al had our locator chips cut out.”

Jack could tell that registered with Daniel. It would make it even more difficult for their teammates to find them. 

“What about Sam and Teal’c?” Okay, so maybe Daniel hadn’t pieced it all together yet.

“They’re not here, Daniel. It’s just you and me.”

Closing his eyes, Daniel dropped his chin to his chest. Jack placed his hand back on Daniel’s shoulder. “I’m sure they’re out looking for us right now.”

Daniel lifted is head and gave Jack a small smile. “I know.”

“And we’ll be ready when they get here,” Jack said. “Now, are you thirsty? Looks like they might have left us some water.”

Jack got up, first making sure Daniel was going to stay upright on his own, and moved to a tray by the door. It held a large mug of water and a crusty piece of bread. He picked up the tray and brought it back to Daniel. 

“Look, room service,” he quipped as he sat down next to Daniel.

Daniel smiled again. “I hope they don’t expect a tip.”

Jack huffed a laugh, glad Daniel was feeling good enough to joke with him. He tore off a piece of bread and handed it to Daniel along with the mug of water. Daniel took a couple of gulps and handed it back to Jack. They sat quietly as they finished the meager meal, each silently considering their situation.

Just as Jack set the empty mug back on the tray, the sound of tromping feet rang down the corridor. A couple of seconds later four Jaffa appeared at the cell’s entrance and Jack found himself facing Sur’ac once again. The force field disappeared and all four Jaffa stepped into the room. Two of the Jaffa trained their staff weapons on Jack and Daniel while Sur’ac and the other two guards approached carrying metal bars and chains. 

“On your feet, Tau’ri,” Sur’ac spat. 

“Just lettin’ that wonderful meal digest,” Jack returned. 

Two staff weapons opened, crackling with energy. 

“Now.”

Jack debated pushing things with Sur’ac but he really didn’t want a repeat of his earlier beating and he didn’t want Daniel subjected to it, either. Climbing to his feet, he held out a hand to his friend. “Let’s go, Daniel. We don’t want to keep our host waiting.”

Daniel looked up at Jack, understanding the unspoken request for Daniel’s trust, knowing Jack would do everything in his power to keep him safe. Reaching up, he grasped Jack’s hand and unsteadily got to his feet.

Sur’ac approached with the bar and chains and Jack took a step in front of Daniel. “That isn’t necessary. We’ll come peacefully.”

“I think it is quite necessary.” Sur’ac’s expression showed just how much he was enjoying the situation. He grabbed Jack’s arm and spun him around so he was facing Daniel, who looked like he was about to protest. Jack shook his head and Daniel pursed his lips, biting back whatever he was about to say. 

While the second Jaffa pulled Jack’s arms behind him, Sur’ac placed the bar at the small of his back and across the crook of his elbows, fastening his wrists in manacles attached by short chains to the ends of the bar. Another strap was fastened around his neck and connected to the bar by a chain. 

The two Jaffa then went to work on Daniel, securing his arms behind his back in the same manner. When they had finished securing Daniel, Sur’ac held up another set of chains and manacles. “Let us not forget to keep those feet where they belong,” Sur’ac said with a sneer. The Jaffa bent down and Jack felt the manacles being snapped around his ankles. He looked at his friend and saw his feet being similarly restrained. 

“Move.” Sur’ac punctuated the order with a shove to Jack’s back. Daniel followed his friend out of the room where they were surrounded by the four Jaffa and led off down the hall. 

Moving with his feet chained together was tricky at best. Jack heard Daniel stumble once, chains rattling, and then a thud and a grunt as his friend landed on his knees. Jack turned back in time to see two Jaffa grab the ends of the metal bar and lift Daniel back to his feet. A gasp of pain escaped from his friend, but before Jack could say anything, his own bar was jerked so he was facing forward again. Another shove had him shuffling down the corridor, the sound of Daniel’s chains rattling with his own. 

A short time later they entered the cargo hold where they had first arrived. Humans and Jaffa alike were carrying and placing containers in several places in the large room. Occasionally a stack would be beamed away. 

Their group came to a stop while Sur’ac conferred with another Jaffa who appeared to be supervising the transfers. Jack turned slightly until he could see Daniel. His friend looked tired and a little pale, but managed a small smile as their eyes met. Jack nodded to him. _Hang in there_. Daniel nodded back. _You got it_.

Sur’ac came back to stand in front of them and in a flash of light, they were gone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Nothing.” Sam’s voice reflected her disappointment. 

Teal’c turned to her and she could see his jaw tense even though his words were calm. “Then let us move on to the next.”

She wanted to kick something but decided that, even though it would feel good to release her frustration, it wouldn’t help anything. _This is taking too long_. She tried not to worry about what was happening to the colonel and Daniel and focus on scanning each world and the space around it as they made their way through the system. The second planet had been barren and the third showed scattered small clusters of life forms, but nothing concentrated enough for a base and no technology. 

With a tight smile at Teal’c, she turned back to her monitors and began scanning the space near the next planet.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The transport beam deposited them into another large room full of people, some of whom were moving the containers that had been transported from the ship and carrying them out of the room. Looking around, Daniel saw that some of the people were working on the room itself, installing panels, tinkering with light fixtures, and building what looked like storage lockers. It gave him the impression that this base was still under construction. 

Jaffa guards were overseeing the activities, barking orders and occasionally delivering a blow to anyone who wasn’t working fast enough. None of the humans—slaves, Daniel presumed—paid any attention to them, but simply concentrated on their tasks. 

Sur’ac conferred with another guard who spoke into a communicator of some kind. Apparently receiving a confirmation, Sur’ac rejoined the group and led them out into the hallway. 

The corridors echoed with the sounds of hammering and they occasionally passed workers carrying what appeared to be building materials. Daniel tried to shift his arms but they were held fast. The metal bar continued to rub across the small of his back, irritating his skin. His knee throbbed where he’d landed on it when he fell and the metal around his ankles was rubbing his skin raw. And he was tired, so tired. He wanted to go back to the sanctuary, but knew he couldn’t. What he’d found there had been amazing. He still couldn’t believe he’d been able to reach it. But he couldn’t go back, not now—he had to stay alert and help Jack get them out of this. First, they were going to have to face Ba’al. As unsettling as that was, it was encouraging to know Sam and Teal’c were looking for them; maybe they had a chance. 

A short walk brought them to a set of doors that were also being worked on, two men rubbing a polish into the wood. They moved aside, bowing, as Sur’ac pushed the doors open and led the group inside. They came to a stop and Jack and Daniel were positioned side by side and pushed to their knees.

The room was larger than any they had yet been in. Gold, hieroglyph-covered panels covered every wall. Braziers blazed at evenly spaced intervals around the room. Draperies of burgundy-colored diaphanous fabric were draped from ceiling to floor around a raised platform that held a high-backed, ornately carved chair with a plush burgundy cushion. Seated on the chair—throne—was Ba’al. The gold emblem identified the man standing next to him as the First Prime. On the opposite side stood several men who were not Jaffa, and Daniel wondered what their positions were.

But it was the object standing off to one side of the throne that caught Daniel’s attention. It looked like a metal spider web, waiting for its prey. It wasn’t something out of his own nightmares, but out of Jack’s. He glanced across at his friend, the picture of calm on the outside, but his eyes—there was fear there that only those closest to him would be able to see. If it came down to it, Daniel couldn’t offer him ascension this time, but he could still offer his support.

~ ~ ~ ~

 

Jack took in the room and its furnishings, his gaze briefly moving to the goa’uld on his throne. Dreg’nor was standing next to him and on the other side were the scientists who had been working on Daniel earlier. His eyes continued to search until they came to rest on the one thing he hoped never to see again. A flash of panic burned across his chest and he fought to remain calm. He would _not_ go through that again and he sure as hell wouldn’t let Daniel go through it. He knew he wasn’t in much of a position to prevent it at the moment, but he was hoping for a miracle at this point. And if anyone could pull off a miracle, it was SG-1.

His eyes were drawn away from the metal web when Ba’al spoke. “Ah, our guests have arrived and seem to be in better health than when I last saw them.” Ba’al remained seated looking down on his prisoners. 

“Yeah, imagine that,” Jack returned. _Like he’s surprised._

Ba’al’s forehead creased briefly as though he didn’t understand Jack’s comment, but he quickly returned to his false sweetness. “Welcome to Saphon.”

“I gotta tell ya, your hospitality sucks.” Jack couldn’t help himself—this sneering snakehead got under his skin. 

“Not happy with your accommodations?” Ba’al continued as he rose from his throne. “We will have to see what we can do to make you more comfortable.” He glanced to the web-like frame and back to his prisoners. 

“What do you want?” Daniel interrupted the exchange, hoping to steer the conversation in a new direction. 

Ba’al’s attention left Jack and settled on Daniel. Several seconds ticked by and Daniel began to feel uncomfortable under the former system lord’s scrutiny. 

“Information, Doctor Jackson. Information that only you can give me.”

Knowing he was wasting his breath, Daniel tried anyway. “I can’t remember anything from when I was ascended. You’re wasting your time.”

“Then, let’s start with something simple. Where is the rest of your team?”

“I have no idea.”

Blinding pain assaulted him and he cried out. “Ahhhh!” He hadn’t seen the Jaffa move up behind him with a pain stick. He fell forward, face hitting the floor, unable to cushion the impact with his bound hands. Contact with the pain stick was severed and immediately the pain eased, leaving his nerve endings burning and his muscles twitching. He was yanked back to his knees, eyes squeezed tightly shut, breathing hard. 

“Hey!” Jack yelled, trying to draw attention away from Daniel. “He’s telling the truth. They weren’t with us. Carter’s doing research and Teal’c’s offworld.” Hopefully, he could lull Ba’al into thinking a rescue wasn’t eminent. 

“Sur’ac, is this true?”

“Yes, my lord,” the Jaffa replied. “O’Neill and the Tok’ra woman we killed were the only two in the room.”

Daniel’s eyes snapped open upon hearing that statement. He looked across at Jack, searching for the truth. Jack wanted to reassure him, but the truth was that Jack didn’t know if Anise was dead or not. It hadn’t looked good, but there was a slim chance she had survived. He gave Daniel a slight shake of his head, eyebrows raised, hoping that conveyed his doubt. 

“My lord,” Dreg’nor interrupted, “the patrol at the gate reported Tau’ri returning fire along with the Tok’ra.”

“I see.” Ba’al’s gaze hardened as he looked at Sur’ac. “You were not thorough in your search, Sur’ac.”

“My lord, I—“

“I will deal with you later. We have more pressing matters to attend to at the moment.”

“Yes, my lord,” Sur’ac said with a bow.

“Now, Doctor Jackson, I think it’s time we moved on to more important questions.”

“I can’t tell you anything. I don’t have any memories from that time.”

“That is something that is yet to be determined.” Ba’al held up a small disk—a memory device. “But I shall enjoy finding the answer. Dreg’nor, why don’t you make Doctor Jackson more comfortable while he answers our questions.”

Dreg’nor bowed and walked over to the metal web. “Bring him.”

Sur’ac and the other Jaffa took hold of the ends of Daniel’s bar and lifted him to his feet, pulling him towards the dreaded device. When Daniel was standing in front of it, the two Jaffa began releasing him from his restraints. Relieved to be rid of the irritating metal bonds, he rubbed the stiff muscles in his arms. His relief was short-lived as the two Jaffa grabbed his arms, turned him around, and pushed him up against the metal frame. At the same moment they let go of him, he felt an invisible force take hold of his body, pressing it tightly against the metal. 

It wasn’t painful, just slightly uncomfortable in that he couldn’t move his limbs. He looked down at Jack, still on his knees, eyes now blazing with fury. Ba’al seemed to notice, too. 

“O’Neill, my scientists have added a new feature to the device that is quite interesting.”

Jack didn’t respond to the goading, keeping his mouth tightly shut and his eyes on Daniel. Ba’al seemed disappointed that there had been no sarcastic remark from the general. “Observe,” he said as he pressed a button on the arm of his chair. 

Daniel felt something sliding slowly across his right arm, followed by a similar feeling on his left. They were smooth and rope-like and he tensed, thinking at first they might be symbiotes. But then he felt more, some thick and others thin, curling around his arms, legs, across his torso and spreading out to his hands, thin sinews spreading his fingers. They were vine-like, wrapping him in their spiraling threads. The last ones wound around his head, across his chin, over his cheeks and nose. Panic rose as his face became criss-crossed with the smallest of the vines. The only movement left to him now was his voice and the blinking of his eyes. 

Jack watched as vine-like tendrils emerged from the web and began winding themselves around Daniel’s body. His own fear was left behind as his anger grew at what was being done to his friend. He watched as panic flared in Daniel’s eyes in response to his face becoming partially covered by the thin vines. The rise and fall of his chest accelerated with the panic before gradually slowing once again. _Good_. Daniel was taking control of his fear. Now they both waited to see what was going to happen. 

“Now, Doctor Jackson, I want you to search your memories for the locations of any Ancient weapons.”

“It doesn’t work that way. I can’t tell you something I don’t remember.”

“Try a little harder.” Ba’al pushed another button and Jack watched Daniel’s eyes go wide and his breathing speed up once again. The muscles in his right arm tensed and sweat broke out on his forehead. Seconds ticked by and Daniel’s arm began to quiver. Ba’al touched another control and Jack heard Daniel let out a heaving breath. 

“What do you think, O’Neill?”

“I think you’re wasting time. You’ve got a memory device, why don’t you just use it?”

“Now, where is the fun in that?”

“Fun? Fun? Why you bastard, I’m—uhh.”

His tirade was cut short by the Jaffa’s staff weapon slamming into his back. Ba’al rose from his chair and descended the steps to stand in front of Jack. “Let me make this clear, O’Neill. Because of you I have to start from scratch, build a new palace, gather more Jaffa for my army—which has been harder to do since Dakara. And I must also find new technology and weapons. Which is where Doctor Jackson comes in.” He paced back and forth a few steps before stopping in front of his prisoner. “I will use the memory device in due time, but for now, I will enjoy making you both suffer.”

_Great. Ba’al’s not just after information, he wants revenge_. Now Jack’s problem was how to get Ba’al’s attention off of Daniel and on to himself. But, since Daniel was the one who had been ascended, the chances of that were pretty slim. 

“If you push him too far, you won’t get anything out of him.” 

Ba’al sneered again. “I think I know what I’m doing. I do have some experience with this. Besides, by torturing him, I am also torturing you.”

Jack knew he was right. Watching Daniel suffer was the worst thing he could do to Jack. 

Ba’al turned back towards Daniel. “Are you ready to try again, Doctor?”

“If it’s . . . all the same . . . to you. . . . I’d . . . rather not.”

“Tell me the name of a planet where I can find Ancient technology.”

“Dakara.”

Ba’al returned to his chair and sat down, cocking his head and smiling. “Your sense of humor is similar to O’Neill’s.” 

“Thanks.” Daniel looked down at Jack and tried to smile, but it was more of a grimace. The grimace contorted into a look of agony and Jack realized Ba’al had activated the device again. Daniel squeezed his eyes shut and a low moan escaped his lips. His breathing became labored and the moan increased in volume, transforming into a ragged cry of pain. 

“Daniel!” Jack tried to get his attention but his cries of agony continued. “Daniel! Look at me!”

Jack saw Daniel’s eyes open slightly, tears spilling down his cheeks, mixing with sweat, as they tried to focus on his friend. “That’s it, look at me. You can get through this.” 

As Daniel continued to look at Jack, the cries made a decrescendo into moans again. His entire body seemed to be trembling, held fast within the vines. Within seconds his breathing began to slow and the moans stopped, telling Jack the device had been turned off. 

“I believe he listens to you, O’Neill.”

_When it counts_ , Jack thought. He kept silent, knowing anything he said would just encourage the goa’uld to hurt Daniel more.

Ba’al turned back to Daniel. “Are you ready to cooperate, Doctor Jackson?”

“I don’t . . . care . . . what you do . . . to me . . . I won’t . . . cooperate.”

Jack was proud of Daniel’s stubbornness, but knew it would only fuel the snake’s desire to hurt him. 

“Perhaps not, but maybe you would be motivated by someone else’s pain,” Ba’al taunted.

Jack knew instantly that he had gotten his wish—Ba’al was going to change tactics and make Daniel watch Jack suffer. And as much as he dreaded what was going to be done to him, he could endure it if it meant Daniel wouldn’t have to.

And even enveloped in pain as he was, Daniel realized it, too. “No! I—“

“Daniel! Let it go—I can handle it.”

His breathing still ragged, Daniel continued to stare at Jack, obviously warring with himself over whether or not to follow that particular order. “Jack—“

“It’s okay, Daniel.” _Let me do this_.

Daniel’s silence told Jack that he would reluctantly follow Jack’s lead. That he knew he couldn’t stop Ba’al from doing this. 

“Isn’t that touching,” Ba’al said, rising from his throne again and moving next to Daniel. He held up the memory device for Daniel to see before pressing it to his temple. Daniel flinched, but continued to glare at the goa’uld.

“Release him,” Ba’al ordered. 

Dreg’nor reached over and pressed a button on Ba’al’s chair. Jack watched in morbid fascination as the tendrils began to retract, slithering across Daniel’s body until they disappeared back into the frame. What was revealed had Jack seething with anger again. Following the paths the vines had taken over Daniel’s skin were painful-looking red welts. If he ever got his hands on Ba’al, Jack vowed, he would literally rip him apart.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The next two planets they had scanned had proven to be lifeless. They were now headed for a more promising-looking planet with a small moon. 

As Sam scanned, she shared her findings with Teal’c. Major Reynolds and Major McKenna had drifted in, standing behind Sam as she analyzed her monitors. 

“This one has strong life signs.” She tried not to get excited prematurely. A few seconds later she looked up and gave Teal’c a bright smile. “Technology and naquadah.”

“You believe this is the location of Ba’al’s base?”

“I think the chances are good this is it.”

“Have you detected O’Neill’s and Daniel Jackson’s locator chips?”

Sam looked back down at her monitors, making some adjustments. “No.” She looked back at her teammate. “But that doesn’t mean they aren’t here. Their chips could have been deactivated.”

No one was going to mention the other possibility for why their locator chips wouldn’t be transmitting. 

“I’m sure that’s it,” Major Reynolds said sympathetically. 

“But it will make it harder to find them once we’re on the planet,” Major McKenna pointed out. 

“We can narrow the search area using the concentration of life signs and technology and split our teams into several groups to search more thoroughly,” Sam offered. 

“Have you detected any ships in the area?” Teal’c asked.

“No, which is a little odd. I still think this is worth checking out.” Sam hoped they weren’t wasting their time; hoped this turned out to be Ba’al’s base and that it was where he had brought the colonel and Daniel. 

“Then let us prepare,” Teal’c said decisively. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

There wasn’t an inch of his body that didn’t hurt. The shock Daniel had received from the vines entwined around his body had been like nothing he’d ever felt before; worse than a zat and even worse than a hand device. It had felt like every nerve was on fire and had lasted an interminable amount of time. He was glad the vines had retracted, but he could still feel where they had been. His muscles still quivered and he fought to bring his breathing back to normal. Add a headache and dizziness and he was thoroughly miserable.

Suddenly, the force holding him against the metal frame released and he pitched forward. Big hands grabbed his arms, aggravating the pain but keeping him from hitting the ground. His legs refused to work on their own and the Jaffa on either side of him dragged him forward and dropped him at the base of Ba’al’s throne where he lay unwilling and unable to move. 

The hands turned him onto his back and he squeezed his eyes shut against the light that was sending daggers into his head. “Don’t go to sleep, Doctor Jackson, we are not done yet.” Ba’al’s voice sounded from inches away and Daniel opened his eyes and squinted, seeing the goa’uld standing over him. Ba’al nodded to someone and Daniel heard chains rattle. Two Jaffa dragged Jack past him and up to the metal web where they positioned him with his back against it. As they stepped away, it was obvious the artificial gravity had taken hold of Jack’s body, immobilizing him.

Two of the non-Jaffa—probably scientists, Daniel decided--rolled a blank screen between Ba’al’s chair and the metal frame that held Jack prisoner. 

Ba’al turned back to Daniel. “Now, Doctor Jackson, let us begin again. I want to know on which planets I can find Ancient technology. Search your memories and show me their locations.”

Daniel looked at Jack, knowing Ba’al would hurt him like he’d just been hurt. Jack knew what he was thinking. “Don’t do it, Daniel!”

Ba’al stepped back to his throne and pressed a button. Daniel watched as the vines emerged from the web and began twining their way across Jack’s body. Jack appeared calm, but Daniel knew he had to be fighting panic. 

“You hesitate, Doctor Jackson. You know what will happen if you refuse. Give me a location.”

Unbidden, images flashed into Daniel’s mind and were broadcast on the screen. He fought to control which ones were brought to the fore. An image settled on the screen. It showed a large temple with a huge statue on top. Next, the image of a wall was displayed. Two appendages reached out and grabbed Jack’s head, downloading the Ancient repository. The image switched to the team stumbling across a field with the repository exploding behind them.

“Not of much use to me, is it,” Ba’al’s pleasant voice now held an edge to it. He turned to the chair and pressed a button. 

Jack’s face creased with pain and his arm tensed then began to quiver. Daniel couldn’t let him suffer. “Wait! Let me try again.”

Jack’s body seemed to relax and he took several gasping breaths. Daniel knew Jack was suffering his worst nightmare because of him. He had to find a way to stop this. There was only one thing he could do. He was afraid to try, worried Ba’al would be able to get what he wanted, but he had to risk it if there was any hope of getting out of this. 

“Very well,” Ba’al replied. “Be warned, I do not have infinite patience.”

Daniel closed his eyes and took a calming breath as he began the meditation, finding it was much easier now to go through the steps and find his way. He tuned out the sounds around him and left the sensations of his physical body behind as he moved through the swirling blues towards the silver.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jack shivered as the pain eased and he tried to catch his breath. The pain had been excruciating and he didn’t particularly want to experience it again. He had heard Daniel call out and offer to try again and also Ba’al’s warning to him. He wanted to tell Daniel not to give the snake anything, but he couldn’t get enough breath to form the words. 

Looking at the screen, Jack saw the earlier images fade away to be replaced with swirling clouds of blue. What was Daniel remembering?

“You are taking a great risk with your friend’s life, Doctor Jackson, by not giving me what I want.” Ba’al was definitely unhappy now.

Daniel didn’t respond and Ba’al walked up to the prone man. “Doctor Jackson.” Ba’al nudged him with his foot and still didn’t receive a response. Ba’al called to his First Prime. “Dreg’nor, wake him.”

Dreg’nor walked up to Daniel and extended the pain stick, touching the man’s chest. Jack watched Daniel’s body jerk but he remained silent and still. Ba’al turned to Jack again, furious. “I don’t know what game you’re playing, but I will get the information I seek, one way or another.”

Ba’al returned to his chair and pressed another button. Instantly, the controls began to spark and sputter. Ba’al backed away and turned to Jack just in time to see the vines retract into the web and the gravity field disappear, releasing Jack from its hold. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sam and Teal’c stood alongside SG-7 and SG-3, completing their gear-up. They had decided to split into three groups and beam into different locations in the complex that had been detected on the planet. Kornan and the other Tok’ra, Zaris, would stay with the cloaked ship, ready to beam them back.

“Colonel Carter,” Kornan called from the control console, “you need to see this.”

Sam moved across the room to the console, with Teal’c at her side. “What is it?”

“Our sensors are detecting one of your people’s locator chips.”

Sam felt a wave of relief wash over her, but then realized Kornan had said ‘one’. She almost didn’t want to ask whose chip it was—who had survived and who hadn’t? Either way, she had lost a teammate. “Which one?”

“It is Doctor Jackson’s.” 

She exchanged a smile with Teal’c, even though she knew he was thinking the same thing—what had happened to the colonel? “Can you beam him up?”

“This is strange,” Kornan replied as he looked at the monitors. “I do not detect any life signs in that location, only the chip.”

_Oh, God, no!_ Was Daniel dead? Or had his chip been removed? Either way, they needed to get him back. “Beam the teams in so that we’re surrounding that location.”

“Very well. Are your ready?”

“We are,” Teal’c replied. 

“Good luck,” Kornan said before beaming them away.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jack had fallen to his knees when the web had released him and he remained in that position as he tried to recover from the pain it had inflicted. He didn’t know what had caused him to be released, but Ba’al didn’t look like it had been his idea. It looked to Jack like the controls had shorted out.

Ba’al was now chastising the scientists who were scrambling to fix the problem. 

A Jaffa strode purposefully into the room and went to one knee in front of Ba’al. “My lord, forgive me, but there are intruders in the palace.”

“What?!”

“Our security scans detected groups in three different areas of the palace.”

“Why have they not been captured?”

“We are attempting to do so, my lord. I am sure we will have them apprehended soon.”

“Make sure none escape.”

“Yes, my Lord.” The Jaffa rose and hurried from the room. Ba’al turned back to Jack. “This is your doing!”

“Hey, I’d like to take the credit, but I don’t know a thing about it,” Jack replied.

“We will continue this later,” Ba’al said, the false pleasantness gone from his voice. “Dreg’nor, take charge of the search.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

“Sur’ac, take the prisoners back to their cell.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

Just as Sur’ac reached down to grab Jack’s arm, an explosion rocked the room. Taking advantage of the Jaffa’s momentary distraction, Jack reached up and grabbed his arm, pulling him down to the floor, his head impacting with a smack. Jack pounded him with a fist before rolling away and grabbing his zat. Deftly, he rose to one knee again and fired at Sur’ac before he could recover. 

The two Jaffa guarding Daniel aimed their staff weapons at Jack, but weapons fire in the hallway had them turning in the opposite direction. 

“Guard the door,” Ba’al ordered as Sur’ac’s partner continued to train his staff weapon on Jack.

Jack cautiously moved across the floor to Daniel’s side and checked for a pulse, zat trained on the Jaffa. Sur’ac picked himself up off the floor and turned eyes burning with fury towards Jack. He extended a hand to the second Jaffa, who relinquished his staff weapon. Sur’ac raised it towards Jack.

“Sur’ac,” Ba’al’s voice halted his movement, “bring the prisoners and come with me. General O’Neill, you cannot fight and carry Doctor Jackson at the same time. Drop the weapon.”

Jack was pretty sure who the intruders attacking the base were and he knew they would find them if he could buy a little more time. “I don’t think so. Daniel and I are staying right here.”

Another explosion sounded, shaking the room. Ba’al was beginning to look concerned. “Have the ship transport us,” he instructed Sur’ac. The Jaffa spoke into a communication device, but received no reply. Ba’al’s forehead pinched in confusion and he pressed a button on his hand device. It looked to Jack like the one Osiris had used in Daniel’s bedroom. Still nothing happened.

More weapons fire could be heard, this time closer to the throne room. The sounds of P-90s became distinct among the staff blasts. The two Jaffa at the door began firing but were quickly cut down, dropping lifeless to the floor. 

With a glare at Jack, Ba’al shouted, “Leave them!” He quickly moved towards the back of the room followed by the two Jaffa and the scientists. A door hidden in the wall swung open and the goa’uld and his minions passed through it, leaving Jack and Daniel alone. 

Just as the group exited, Carter and Teal’c appeared at the room’s entrance, weapons sweeping the room, searching out any remaining threats. Behind them, Jack saw Reynolds watching the corridor; he was glad to know there was at least one more team backing up SG-1.

“Sir?” Carter came up beside him, not lowering her weapon. Teal’c continued to prowl the room, making sure they were alone. 

“You just missed Ba’al. He and his buddies took off through the back door,” he said, jerking a thumb in the direction the goa’uld had gone. 

“Are you all right?”

“Mostly, but I’m not too sure about Daniel.”

“My god, what did they do to him?” She was surveying the numerous welts that trailed across his chest, arms, face, and even his feet.

“Ba’al’s new toy. I’ll tell you about it later. What’s the plan for getting out of here?”

Sam pushed aside her horror at seeing what had been done to Daniel and slipped immediately back into military mode. “We have a Tok’ra Al’Kesh waiting to beam us up.”

Surprise was Jack’s first reaction; he figured the Tok’ra would vamoose and leave them to clean up the mess. But instead, they had loaned them an Al’Kesh. 

“Colonel Carter.” A familiar voice came over her radio and Jack recognized Major McKenna. He smiled inwardly—even if he hadn’t had a talk with the man about Daniel, he knew the major would do whatever it took to get their missing archaeologist back. Pride in the people of the SGC swelled within him. 

“Yes, Major?” Sam replied.

“We’re in a lab—we have one of the scientists. He said General O’Neill and Doctor Jackson are with Ba’al. Thought you might want to question him some more.” 

“We have the general and Daniel. Bring the scientist with you--we don’t have time to question him now.”

“Hold on!” Jack interrupted. “Have you found the sarcophagus? We need to either bring it with us or destroy it.”

“Haven’t come across it, sir. Wait a sec.” There was a brief silence before he continued. “The scientists says Ba’al didn’t have a sarcophagus. It was one of the things he was trying to get his hands on.”

_No sarcophagus?_ That didn’t make sense. 

Weapons fire resumed in the hallway. 

“Colonel Carter, more Jaffa just showed up!” Reynolds shouted.

“Sir, we’ve gotta go,” Sam said looking at Jack.

“Right.” He’d figure it out later. Right now, they needed to get out of here.

“Major McKenna,” Sam said keying her radio, “did you set any charges?”

“Yes, we did, colonel. We’re ready to go.”

“Kornan, this Colonel Carter. Can you lock on to all of us?”

“Yes, Colonel. Beaming now.”

A hum and a flash of bright light brought the eight of them out of Ba’al’s palace and onto the Al’Kesh. A moment later SG-7 joined them with Ba’al’s scientist in tow. Matthews was gripping one arm—a tattered sleeve revealing scorched skin.

“T, can you help me with Daniel?” Jack asked.

“I will gladly carry Daniel Jackson.” Teal’c handed his staff weapon to Jack then carefully reached under Daniel’s shoulders and legs, gently picking him up and pulling him close as he carried him from the room. Jack observed the tightening of Teal’c’s jaw as his eyes surveyed the welts on Daniel’s body. 

Jack leaned on Teal’c’s staff as he followed them through the ship to another room. He was still a little weak from his ordeal with the vines. Sam walked beside him, eyes glued to Daniel’s still form. 

McKenna took the scientist off to another room where Jack knew they would keep him restrained while they questioned him. Reynolds and SG-3 followed Jack, hanging back a little to give the teammates some breathing room. 

Carson settled Matthews in a corner and began assessing his wound. Teal’c laid Daniel on a cot that had been set up and stepped back, allowing Sam to check their teammate. She handed her weapon to him before kneeling next to Daniel. 

Sam pointed to the disk on Daniel’s temple. “Is this—“

“It’s a regular memory device, as far as I know,” Jack replied, knowing what she was asking. 

Sam gently took hold of the disk and pulled, easily detaching it from his temple. She checked his pulse, respiration and pupils before declaring, “His vitals are all normal.”

“Yeah, well, those welts aren’t normal.” Jack hadn’t meant to be short with her and sighed. “Sorry. They were caused by these vine-like things that came out of that . . . thing.”

Sam grimaced as she examined the red, raised welts. “What did they use to do this?”

“It was like an electrical shock—but they burned like acid.”

Sam looked up at him, then at his arm. “Why don’t you sit down, sir, and let me look at yours, too.” 

He started to protest but decided that sitting actually sounded like a good idea. He leaned one hand on the wall as he sank onto another cot next to Daniel’s. They’d obviously anticipated that their teammates might need medical attention when they found them.

Jack glanced over at the members of SG-7. “How’s Matthews?”

“It just grazed his arm, General,” Carson replied. 

“I’ll be fine, sir,” Matthews added as his arm was bandaged. 

“Glad to hear it, son,” Jack replied.

A loud ‘whump’ sounded as the ship shook violently. 

“We’re under attack,” Kornan announced over the intercom. 

Teal’c turned and ran from the room, followed by SG-3. Matthews stood up, intent on joining them, but was stopped by Carson. “You should rest, Justin.”

“I’m fine and I’m coming with you,” Matthews said adamantly.

Carson shook his head but didn’t argue as both men left the room. 

Jack lifted himself off the cot, intent on going, too. 

“Sir, you should stay here,” Sam said.

“I’m fine. Stay with Daniel and see what you can do for him.”

“But—“

“That’s an order.”

“Yes, sir.” 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Jack exited the room, headed for the pel’tak, and Sam turned back to Daniel.

_Do what you can_. It wouldn’t be much because Sam had no idea what else had been done to him or why he was still unconscious. She unclipped her pack and let it drop. Digging through it, she pulled out a med kit. This one carried more than their field kits—they had tried to be prepared for the possibility of finding their friends in less than perfect health. 

She pulled out an ointment and began the task of treating the numerous welts criss-crossing Daniel’s skin. 

Another thud and shudder rocked the ship and she stopped her ministrations until things had settled. She resumed her work, anger and outrage gradually transitioning into sadness as she thought about all Daniel had been through. He had died again, for God’s sake, and in a horribly painful way. Anger flared again as she thought of the replicator with _her_ face running a blade through Daniel’s chest. For him to see the face of someone he trusted—her face—deliver the mortal blow made it even more horrible. She looked down at that same chest now that showed no signs of being sliced open, looking whole except for the angry welts across it. 

Pulling herself together, she finished treating his chest and moved to his arms, gently dabbing the ointment onto the raised, red lines. Next she moved to his face, gently brushing aside the short hair on his forehead before carefully applying the medicine to it, then moving on to his chin. She paused as she finished his face, wishing she could see those beautiful blue eyes looking up at her, but he remained quiet. There had been no reaction to her touch and she found herself worrying that more serious damage might lie beneath the surface. A tear escaped and rolled down her cheek. She would not lose him again!

“Daniel, if you can hear me, you’re safe now. We’re on a ship headed back to Earth. Hang in there, Daniel; we don’t want to lose you again.” She pressed a kiss to one of the few spots on his cheek that was not covered by a welt. 

“Carter.” The colonel’s voice on her radio broke the silence and she realized the impacts had stopped. “How’s Daniel?”

“The same, sir. I’ve treated the welts but he’s still unconscious. What’s happening out there?”

“It was a Ha’tak—probably Ba’al’s. It was hiding behind that moon. We managed to jump into hyperspace, so hopefully we’ve lost it.”

“That’s great, sir. Why don’t you come back and let me treat your wounds.”

“That’s okay, I’m-- Hey! Teal’c, I can—“

“Colonel Carter, I will see that General O’Neill returns for medical attention immediately.”

Sam laughed, sniffing back the tears that threatened to fall. “Thanks, Teal’c.”

“You are most welcome.”

Realizing she hadn’t treated Daniel’s feet, Sam set to work once again, letting the warm feeling the laugh had brought stay with her, lifting her hopes that things would be all right.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Jack had returned to his cot and allowed Sam to treat the welts on his arm. His eyes had drifted to his friend more than once while she worked, hoping to see some sign that he would wake up. He’d done it on Ba’al’s ship; surely he’d do it again. 

As Sam worked, Jack realized just how tired he was. _I really am getting too old for this_ , he thought as he drifted off to sleep.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jack woke, feeling the change in the sound of the engines. He pushed himself up to a sitting position and glanced at Daniel again, only to find he was still out.

“O’Neill, we are preparing to land.”

“Where?” He rubbed his eyes, feeling like he could use more sleep.

“The Tok’ra base from whence this ship came. There is a stargate we may use to return to Earth.”

“Daniel?” He hoped Teal’c would say Daniel was just sleeping, but that hope was short-lived. 

“There has been no change.” Teal’c’s voice conveyed his own displeasure with the situation. 

Sam entered the room as the ship landed. “Sir, we’re here.”

“I will carry Daniel Jackson,” Teal’c stated and Jack didn’t argue. Once again, using actions that were incredibly gentle for a man his size, Teal’c lifted Daniel and cradled him to his chest. 

It was killing Jack to see his friend so still and lifeless. He refused to believe this was permanent.

They were met in the corridor by the rest of the SG members, each throwing a concerned glance to the unconscious man in Teal’c’s arms. The group exited the ship into a barren land of low mesas and an overcast sky. A slight breeze ruffled their hair, its coolness spreading a chill over them. 

There was a small group of Tok’ra waiting outside the ship. One of them walked up to Jack. “General O’Neill, it is good to see the mission was successful. Is there anything we can do for you and your people?”

Once again, Jack was surprised by the Tok’ra’s willingness to help. He had figured after Jacob’s death most of them would have no use for the Tau’ri. Maybe he’d have to rethink his attitude towards them. Maybe. “Thank you, but we just need to get Daniel back to the SGC.”

“Of course. I do hope he recovers.”

“Thanks, and . . . thanks for the loan of the ship, too.”

The man bowed and turned towards the stargate which sat some fifty yards away. The SG members headed for the gate where Sam punched in the address and, after the connection was made, sent the IDC. Receiving confirmation, they entered the wormhole.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

They arrived to the sound of klaxons blaring in a room full of SFs. At the base of the ramp General Hammond stood as though time had rolled away and nothing had changed, greeting SG-1 as they returned from another mission. His gaze took in each member of the group, making sure everyone had returned and assessing their condition. His eyes lingered a little longer on the motionless man cradled to Teal’c’s chest before settling on Jack. 

“General O’Neill, welcome home.”

“Thank you, sir, it’s good to be back.”

“How is Doctor Jackson?”

Jack took a deep breath and sighed. “We don’t know, sir. He hasn’t woken up.” 

Hammond nodded before turning back to Teal’c. “Teal’c, take Doctor Jackson to the infirmary. The rest of you, get checked out, too. We’ll debrief afterwards.”

“Yes, sir,” Jack replied, anxious to get Daniel in the hands of the doctors. 

Two medics entered pushing a gurney, but Teal’c refused to relinquish his burden. The medics moved aside and allowed him to carry Daniel, falling in behind him.

They were met in the infirmary by Doctor Brightman and several nurses who allowed Teal’c to settle Daniel on a bed before setting to work on their unresponsive patient. Jack filled Doctor Brightman in on what had been done to Daniel—at least the part he knew about—including how he had acted when he’d been awake. 

Doctor Meyers led Jack to another bed and checked his injuries while the rest of the teams waited their turn. Jack kept his eyes on his friend, answering the doctor’s questions without looking at him. 

Daniel was hooked up to several monitors, his blood taken and his injuries assessed. The curtain was pulled and Jack’s view was cut off. He suddenly became aware of Doctor Meyers giving him instructions on treating his arm and then releasing him. With a quick “Thanks,” he walked over to the curtain around Daniel’s bed where he was joined by Sam and Teal’c. The curtain was pulled back to reveal Daniel, now dressed in scrubs and still out of it. 

Orderlies began pushing the bed towards the door. “Where are you taking him, doc?” Jack asked.

“We need to do an MRI and see if there’s any brain damage. His EEG is a little unusual.”

_Brain damage_. Jack’s chest tightened at the words. Not Daniel, his brilliant, think-outside-the-box, explain it to you in a dozen languages, pain-in-the-ass friend. He refused to consider it. Daniel had come out of the unresponsive state he was in and been lucid in Ba’al’s palace. Jack had to believe he would come out of this whole yet again. But that niggled something in his brain and he thought back to the unanswered questions he had put aside earlier. No sarcophagus. The web shorting out as it was about to torture him. Carter and Teal’c knowing where to look for them. And he knew. It was far-fetched, but hey, what wasn’t around here? But he was sure.

He glanced at Carter whose eyes were shimmering with tears. She looked at him, asking for reassurance. “He’ll make it, Carter, and he’ll be fine.” Saying the words fortified his own hope that things were going to turn out all right. 

“Indeed,” Teal’c agreed.

“I suggest you all get some rest,” Doctor Brightman instructed before following the bed down the hall. 

“Carter, Teal’c.” Jack jerked his head in the direction of the door. They followed him into the hall where he stopped, looking around to make sure he wasn’t overheard. “We need to talk—privately. Follow me.”

Exchanging questioning looks, Sam and Teal’c followed the general down the hall.

Taking the elevator a couple of levels down, they got off in an area of storage rooms. Jack led them to one, and looking both ways to make sure they were unnoticed, and entered. 

It was a storage room about the size of a small bathroom with floor-to-ceiling shelves on either side. A room that had no surveillance camera. They squeezed themselves inside and Sam and Teal’c turned and looked at Jack expectantly. 

“Before we meet with Hammond, we’d better get our stories straight.”

“Sir?”

“To what do you refer, O’Neill?”

“Some things happened on this mission that will raise some questions. There’s only one explanation that I can come up with and it’s not something we want anyone else to know about. This has to stay off the record.” 

“You have my word, O’Neill.”

“Of course we won’t say anything, sir. What things are you talking about?”

Jack raked a hand through his hair and paced a couple of steps and back. How was he going to say this without sounding crazy? 

“On Ba’al’s ship, I got beaten pretty badly. Enough that it caused internal damage.”

“Are you sure? You checked out okay with Dr. Brightman, didn’t you?”

“I have enough experience to know what it feels like, Carter. I’m sure.”

“How do you explain your recovery, O’Neill?”

“I remember feeling warmth in the injured area and was aware of this white light around me, even though I had my eyes closed. When I woke up, I could tell it was healed and I assumed Ba’al had put me in the sarcophagus.”

“But Ba’al’s scientist claims he didn’t have one.”

“I don’t think he did. When I woke up, Daniel was lying next to me and his hand was on my stomach. After he woke up, he kept saying, ‘You were hurt’ even though he was unconscious the whole time.”

“Sir, are you saying _Daniel_ healed you?” Her voice was incredulous. “But how?”

“I’m not sure, but the Tok’ra were trying to get to his Ascended memories. What if something they did allowed him to tap into them?”

“I . . . I don’t know. I guess it’s possible,” Sam said, still processing what this would mean.

“You spoke of more than one event,” Teal’c said, “What else occurred that you believe could be attributed to Daniel Jackson?”

“Ba’al put him on that web and used the vines to torture him. When Daniel wouldn’t give him anything, Ba’al switched our places, hoping to get Daniel’s cooperation by threatening to torture me. He zapped me once and Daniel said he would try again. Instead, he became unresponsive again. When Ba’al went to zap me a second time, the device shorted out. And there’s one other thing; Ba’al was going to transport us to his ship, but his communicator wouldn’t work. That’s when he ended up hightailing it out the back door.”

Sam and Teal’c silently considered the events Jack had described. “Sir,” Sam’s voice was serious as it broke the silence, “Daniel’s locator chip suddenly began working before we beamed to the palace. It helped us narrow the area to search.”

Jack looked her directly in the eye, his voice just as serious. “Carter, I watched Ba’al smash those chips.”

“I believe Daniel Jackson has found a way to use the Ancient knowledge hidden in his memories,” Teal’c stated.

“Then why is he still unconscious?” Sam asked. 

“He was already pretty weak when Ba’al tortured him. Maybe using the Ancient knowledge to do all this stuff drained him.”

“Then perhaps he will recover once his body has had time to heal,” Teal’c suggested. 

“I hope so,” Jack said. “But in the meantime, we can’t let this information get out. If anyone else found out he actually _had_ gained access to the Ancient knowledge, they’d lock him up so they could ‘study’ him.”

Sam shuddered at the thought of Daniel being locked away at Area 51. But she knew that’s exactly what would happen if this got out. The Tok’ra and Ba’al had already made attempts at getting that knowledge; what would happen if word got around that Daniel could actually _use_ the Ancient knowledge?

“Sir, how are we going to keep this contained? How are we going to protect Daniel?”

“First, this doesn’t go beyond the three of us. Depending on what happens when Daniel wakes up, we may have to include Hammond and Brightman. As for protecting him—I’ve got an idea about that. For now, let’s get through the briefing. I’m not gonna say anything about being injured or about Ba’al’s device shorting out. You leave out the part about the locator chip.”

“Yes, sir. I won’t give anything away.”

“Nor will I.”

“I know you won’t. Now, let’s go see Hammond.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

They skipped the showers, though Jack stopped to get a fresh shirt, and headed for the briefing room. Major McKenna, Colonel Reynolds, and Dr. Brightman were already there. Noticeably absent were any members of the IOA and the Tok’ra.

Everyone took a seat with General Hammond sitting in his old spot at the head of the table. 

“General O’Neill, for the purpose of this debriefing, I will remain in command. As soon as we are finished, I will officially return control to you.”

“That’s fine, sir.”

“Why don’t you begin by telling us what happened at the Tok’ra base?”

With a quick glance at Sam and Teal’c, Jack began his story. 

When he finished, Sam gave her account. Teal’c, McKenna and Reynolds all added their viewpoints, including how they had detonated explosives in several key areas of Ba’al’s palace. 

“It looks like we’ve put a crimp in Ba’al’s rebuilding plans,” Hammond concluded. 

“Unfortunately, he got away,” Jack noted unhappily. 

“We’ll deal with him when the time comes,” Hammond assured him. “Doctor Brightman, your report?”

Doctor Brightman gave her notes on the health of the team members, ending with Daniel. “He has numerous welts from those vines you spoke of, and he’s a little dehydrated—we’re taking care of that with IV fluids. But I can find no reason for him to still be unconscious. We’re waiting on the results of the MRI—that should tell us something.”

Jack looked across at Sam and then Teal’c. He knew they were all wondering the same thing. “What will it tell you?” 

“We should be able to tell if there’s damage anywhere, which areas are functioning properly and which are not.”

Jack had a feeling it might show something else—something unexpected and something they wouldn’t want made public. It looked like he was going to have to have a chat with Hammond after all.

The phone rang and Sam got up and answered it. When she hung up, she announced, “Daniel’s showing signs of waking up.”

“Sir—“ Doctor Brightman began.

“Go ahead, doctor.”

She excused herself and left the room. 

“If that’s all, people, we’ll close the debriefing.” Seeing no one had anything to add, Hammond continued, “Dismissed.”

Sam and Teal’c hung back as McKenna and Reynolds left. “You go ahead and check on Daniel,” Jack said. They both nodded their understanding and left Jack with General Hammond. 

“Jack, I’m officially returning control of the SGC to you.”

“Thank you, sir. Before you leave, I have one more thing that’s rather urgent that I need to discuss with you.”

Hammond gave him an assessing look, being familiar with Jack’s propensity for leaving out certain details from briefings, before agreeing. “All right.” 

“Let’s use my office,” Jack said, leading the way.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sam and Teal’c entered the infirmary and headed towards the bed that held their friend. A nurse was checking his vitals and smiled at them as she finished. “He’s been a little restless—I think he’ll be waking up soon.” She left and Sam and Teal’c took up positions on either side of the bed.

Sam reached over and brushed the hair back from Daniel’s forehead, taking care not to touch any of the welts. Daniel stirred, turning his head toward her touch. 

“Hey, Daniel, it’s Sam.” 

His brow wrinkled then relaxed again. Sam found herself visually following the paths the vines had taken across his face and neck. They had faded from red to a dark pink and were no longer raised and angry-looking as they had been earlier. 

She looked up at Teal’c. “Do these welts look different to you?”

“They appear to be diminishing and I believe their color has lightened.” He gazed back at her, unspoken thoughts passing between them. 

Daniel mumbled something, bringing their attention back to him. 

“We’re here, Daniel,” Sam soothed, taking his lax hand carefully in hers. She squeezed lightly and felt a gentle squeeze in return. “That’s it, open your eyes.”

At that moment, Jack, Hammond, and Doctor Brightman walked into the infirmary and approached the bed. Doctor Brightman looked slightly flustered, but sounded professional when she spoke. “We have the results of his MRI back and they look good.” She gave Jack a quick glance before continuing. “Has he been awake, yet?” 

“He’s been moving around a bit and he mumbled something once,” Sam reported. 

Jack moved closer and leaned down. “Hey, Daniel, I’ve got a fresh mug of your favorite coffee here.”

The forehead wrinkled again before eyelids began to blink. “Jack?” Daniel squinted, narrow slits of blue searching their surroundings. 

“How’d you do that, sir?” Sam asked.

“Just gotta have the right motivation, Carter.” He turned back to Daniel. “You with us now, Dannyboy?”

“Sam?”

“Right here, Daniel,” she replied, keeping her hold on his hand. 

“It is good to see you awake, Daniel Jackson.”

“Teal’c?”

“I am here.”

“Coffee?”

“Uh, sorry, maybe later, Daniel,” Jack smiled, unrepentant. “Let Doctor Brightman check you out first.”

Daniel’s forehead creased even more but he didn’t argue as Doctor Brightman moved in and did her own assessment, including a close examination of his welts. Upon finishing, she looked him in the eye. “How do you feel?”

“Well, uh, a little tired.”

Jack snorted and gave Daniel a challenging look. 

“Are the welts still causing you pain?” Doctor Brightman continued.

“Not really, they’re—ow!” 

Doctor Brightman looked at him apologetically as she removed her finger from his arm. “Sorry. They do look better.” Once again she glanced at Jack before returning her attention to Daniel. “I think we’ll keep you overnight just to make sure,” she said.

“But I feel—“

“Daniel, listen to the doc,” Jack interrupted.

“Since when did you start following the doctor’s orders?” Daniel shot back.

“Aht! No arguments. You’re lucky to be alive. One more day in here would be a good idea.”

Daniel started to protest but stopped when he saw the look in Jack’s eyes. No longer teasing, only the deep concern of a friend. 

“Okay.”

Teal’c’s eyebrow rose sharply and he glanced at Sam, who simply shrugged. Still holding Daniel’s hand, she leaned over and kissed an unblemished spot on his cheek. “Get some rest, Daniel, and we’ll see you later.”

He squeezed her hand in return before she pulled away. “Thanks, Sam.”

Teal’c bowed and followed her out of the infirmary. General Hammond moved closer and smiled at Daniel. “It’s good to have you back safely, son.”

“Thank you, sir. It’s good to see you again.”

Hammond left and Jack sat down next to his friend. “You gave us another scare, Daniel, and I gotta tell ya, I’m gettin’ too old for this.”

“Sorry, Jack. This isn’t exactly what I had planned, either.”

“Yeah, well, if you ever ask to go off with the Tok’ra again, I’ll kick your butt.”

Daniel smiled but quickly sobered. “Anise—is she—“

“Not dead. They told me it was touch and go there for awhile, but the symbiote was able to heal her—them—with the help of the Tok’ra. She wants to come back and apologize when you’re up to it.”

Closing his eyes again, Daniel was relieved that Anise had not died. Even though she had tricked him into going off-world with her, she had tried to help him when their ‘questioning’ went too far. He was suddenly aware of how tired he still was. Apparently, so was Jack.

“Rest now, Daniel,” Jack said. Daniel opened his eyes again and looked at his friend. “We’ll talk more later. I think we have a few things to clear up.”

Daniel searched his friend’s face and realized he knew what ‘things’ Jack was referring to. Jack knew. Daniel wasn’t looking forward to that conversation, but he tried not to show it. “Sure, Jack.” He closed his eyes again, the sound of Jack’s footsteps as he left the infirmary the last thing he heard. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Daniel sat at his desk, notebook open, a small stone statue covered with unusual script resting in front of him, waiting for him to unlock its secrets. But he wasn’t focused on the statue—his mind churned with the events of the past few days. 

Doctor Brightman had kept him most of the next day, releasing him in time for his three friends to herd him towards the commissary for a meal before escorting him back to his on-base quarters. The doctor had confined him to base for the next three days to ‘ensure he recuperated properly’. 

Jack had gotten an earful from the IOA and had given them the short version of what had happened before they, and Hammond, had left. The Tok’ra had left, too, taking the rebel scientists to face the judgment of the High Council.

So, here he was the next morning, sitting in his office, ready to work on his translation, only to find he couldn’t concentrate on it. The images and feelings of what he’d experienced filled his mind instead. And he knew Jack would be coming to have that talk.

He closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind. It was almost like it was calling to him now, pulling him toward that calm center. As he relaxed into the sensation, he became aware of someone watching him. Opening his eyes, he looked towards the door—Jack was standing there, a curious look on his face.

“Hey, Jack.”

“Daniel.” Jack moved into the room, closing the door behind him. He stopped next to Daniel’s desk, moving the ever-present coffee mug to the far corner before perching on the edge. “Whatcha workin’ on?”

“A translation of this statue SG-16 found on P8E-04X,” he explained, pointing to the figure in front of him. “It looks like it might be related to—“ He stopped and looked up at Jack who had his lips pursed. “But you didn’t come here to talk about that, did you?”

“No, I didn’t.” Jack titled his head slightly as he stared at Daniel. “I wanna talk about what happened to you, Daniel; about what you did.”

Daniel flicked his eyes up to the security camera in the corner. 

“It’s offline temporarily. Carter’s working on it.”

Daniel looked back at him and saw the slight smile on his face, and offered his own in return. 

“I know _what_ happened, I just don’t know _how_ ,” Jack continued, back on the original topic.

“I’m not sure myself,” Daniel replied quietly, looking down at his hands. 

“Could you do it again?” Jack gently pressed.

“I . . . I don’t know. I’m not sure I want to try.”

“You saved my life, you know, by healing my injuries.”

“That’s what pulled me back. I knew you needed my help.” Daniel looked up again and held Jack’s gaze. 

“Thank you, Daniel.” Jack stood up, staying close to the desk. “This is one time I’m not going to press you.” He placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Carter, Teal’c and I won’t say a word. Hammond is gonna keep an ear to the ground in DC and let us know if he hears anything. And Doctor Brightman intercepted your MRI before anyone else had a chance to look at it. Good thing, too, because it sounds like it was a bit unusual. I’m pretty sure it’s managed to get misfiled, though, so I doubt if anyone will ever see it.”

Now it was Daniel’s turn to be grateful. Jack, Sam, Teal’c, Hammond, and even Doctor Brightman, had all gone out of their way to protect him, even though they were risking their jobs by doing so. “Thanks, Jack.”

“You know, that kind of power can be a scary thing, Daniel. It’s also very tempting as we both know. If anyone digs deep enough and figures it out, we might have to deal with this again. But you know we’ll do everything in _our_ power to protect you.”

Daniel was moved beyond words, but managed to choke out, “I know.”

“And to that end, I have a couple more things to tell you. First, I’ve been offered the job of Head of Homeworld Security—and I’ve accepted.”

“What? But—“

“Hammond’s going to be an advisor to the President. He asked for me personally as his replacement.”

“Really?”

“Gee, don’t act so surprised, Daniel.”

“No, no, it’s just—wow! That’s a big move, Jack.”

“Yes, it is. But there’s more. You remember that request you put in to go to Atlantis? I approved it. You leave in two weeks.”

Daniel sat with his mouth hanging open, unable to believe what he’d just heard. 

“Well, that’s a first,” Jack said.

“Uh . . . huh?”

“Daniel Jackson, speechless.”

“I . . . I don’t know what to say, Jack. This is what I’ve wanted for so long—what I’ve worked for. Thank you.” He stood up and Jack grabbed him by the shoulders, pulling him into a hug. 

“You deserve it, Daniel,” Jack said, slapping his friend on the back before pulling away, hands still grasping Daniel’s shoulders. “It’s a good time for you to get away. Just remember, if you need help with this, you know where to find me.”

“I know,” Daniel replied.

Jack took hold of Daniel’s hand and turned it over, revealing the fading pink lines across it. “This could come in handy someday, if you ever figure out how to do it again.” 

“I know,” Daniel repeated. 

“I’ll leave you to your packing them,” Jack said, moving toward the door. “Don’t forget, Carter and Teal’c are expecting us in the commissary at 1800 sharp.”

“I’ll be there.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jack strolled down the corridor, spirits lifted. Sending Daniel to Atlantis would be the best thing for him right now. Out of reach of the IOA, the Tok’ra, and the goa’uld. Jack could rest easy knowing in a few short weeks Daniel would be on his way to Atlantis. Surely he would be safe tucked away in the city of the Ancients. And surely even Daniel couldn’t find trouble on base in the next two weeks.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

_Atlantis!_ Daniel couldn’t believe he was finally going. And now, he had another reason for wanting to explore the city of the Ancients. He knew his friends would do anything to protect him, but now he had to protect them. No one would know, not even Jack.

He looked up at the camera—no red light meant it was still offline. His gaze then settled on the mug Jack had moved to the far corner of his desk, and he reached out his hand towards it. 

The mug slid smoothly across the surface of the desk, gently nestling itself in his open palm.


End file.
